Sleeping Hook: Stages of addiction
by Wandering princess
Summary: AU post final battle, Aurora is starting a new life in Storybrooke and things are looking up, until of course, 1)Regina decides to scheme "for the common good", 2) Mulan and Phlilip ask her to plan their wedding, and 3) a heart-thieving-pirate-asshole suddenly disrupts her routine, what's a princess to do in that situation? certainly not start to get addicted to his presence
1. Chapter 1

**I've been meaning to write a SleepingHook Fanfic for so long guys I can't believe I actually am going trough with this, so yes it's been a slow week and I'm house sitting which means this five-minute internet café break should be used in pursuit of the betterment of humanity but I don't care.**

**Now things you need to know: this is AU post curse/final battle, there's a 30-40 page story behind this (things that led up to where Aurie and Kill are now) and before I post it I wanted to start with this scene, do a trial run... take it as a oneshot if you want or if you wish for me to post the entire thing tell me=).**

**Sleeping Hook: It's sort of a funny story**

The phone in Aurora's house was ringing, her essay for Harvard needed to be sent by eight am, why couldn't people understand that?, looking at the clock she sighed 3am, she only knew of one person who would dare call at that time, and for all she knew he could rot in hell, nevertheless, she was still a good person, and besides maybe it was someone else, who really needed help "hello, who in the world calls at this unholy hour?" she snapped raising her eyes from the laptop

"Hello Miss Thorne this is Ed, I'm sorry to wake you up but we have a situation here" the man calling said, Aurora of course knew who "Ed" was, the bartender of the rabbit hole was as well-known man as she was a well-known princess around town and in his case, not for the best reasons, listening to the other side of the line and hearing curses and a couple of crashes, Aurora was puzzled.

"Somebody call her already I can't take this any longer" Another faint voice shouted followed by a crash and sounds of glass breaking.

"Ed, wait a second, is that Smee I'm hearing?" she panicked, the sounds on the rabbit hole seemed getting rowdier and rowdier, what the heck was going on?.

"fraid so ma'am, listen your highness, I know it's not in my place but...ohh for fucks sake someone hold him down, Hook shut up man I have a Princess on the phone!" he shouted over the fuss of men voices and fight movements

Aurora could hear something shuffling from Ed's side of the line and then, the slurry voice of Mr heart-thieving-bastard came up "Aurie, Aurieee, beautiful Aurieeee" He bellowed top of his lungs into the speaker "are you homeeee lass, what are you weawwwring?"

"Hook is that really you?" Aurora sighed in disbelief, the first thought on her mind, not being that the bartender was calling HER instead of Regina or his crew mates, but the fact she thought pirates could hold their liquor and he clearly was intent on proving her wrong "Are you really drunk?"

"awww beautiful,me (hick) drunk?, I'm a piraaate the best of the seven seas riiiight mates?!" there was a vague sound of cheering somewhere off behind him, then she heard some shouting and a couple of "get off" before the phone was (presumably) reclaimed by Ed

"Miss would please come for him, pirate won't shut up and I'm this close of throwing his ass out" Ed groaned, forgetting protocol and going straight down to business the darn pirate was destroying his bar.

Aurora sighed, and raised her eyes to the sky, really lord?, why me she asked herself "I'll be right there Ed just keep him from punching anybody will you?" she replied promptly, wondering how the hack was she supposed to finish a Harvard essay, plan a prom, get ready for Mulan and Phillip's wedding, and rescue a pirate from a bar squabble all in a few hours. Forget sleep, this was going to take a while.

Not caring what she was wearing, Aurora promptly threw on the first dress that could fit over her head over her current white nightgown, donned a pair of mismatched flats and ran out the door making sure to grab her purple cashmere trench coat on the way out, she might be in a hurry but a princess was a princess, regardless of the hour.

Hook, well he was (according to him) having the time of his life, nothing better than a good bar fight to forget one's troubles, and if one's troubles had to do with royals and their mega prissyness, well why not add a heavy dose of the hardest liquor Ed could mix in his bar, well at least that's what his crew had thought, they hadn't counted on the fact that the captain, might have been a little too troubled to be helped by the usual means.

And might end up getting in a fist fight with the (ex) Sherriff of Nottingham over (yes you guessed) Aura Thorne's pretty arse, (or as people knew her in the Enchanted forest) the honorable lady Aurora princess of Sumerian land of the sands, so yeah things had gotten pretty wild after that, and Ed who really liked to keep the Rabbit Hole away from Sheriff Leroy's sniffing nose, had threatened to all but cut Smee's private parts with a rusty knife if he didn't fess up and reveal what woman (because Ed was a bartender, and he knew these drunken stupors had only one cause) was responsible for taking the great Captain Hook's resistance to hard liquor to it's limits.

Once Smee had spilled, all left to do had just been call the woman and be done with it, the only problem of course was that Ed as a rule had an anti-royalty policy in his bar, (it had to be done, with Lacey and Emma and Regina and David and the rest getting hammered in the rabbit hole and later wrecking havoc, he'd been forced to either enforce that policy or close the damned bar), but looking at Hook punching any man close to his (only) fist, he was willing to make an exception for princess Aurora.

"where is he?" asked the princess as soon as she stepped trough the threshold, it smelled like scotch, and cigarettes and maybe marijuana, Aurora squirmed under the faint lights of the bar, how she hated the rabbit hole, it reminded her of taverns back at the enchanted forest, and nothing good could ever be found in a tavern, oh he was going to pay, Smee who lay knocked out by the bar grunted and Ed pointed to the corner, where a very (pseudo) Captain Hook, was singing a bad version of a dirty pirate song.

"He calmed down after I told him you where coming, but I was going to trow him out, want to take him out of my hands miss Thorne?" Ed who was a tall redheaded ex-henchman for the evil queen, bowed his head in silent acknowledgment, his version of a courtesy, Aurora immediately straightened her spine and stood full height by force of habit "I understand if you don't want to, tough he's been bellowing your name for quite a while in-between blows"

"Don't worry I'll take him"Hook saw her standing next to Ed and smirked, _ohh the bastard_, so Aurora changed her mind about being nice "you know what Ed why don't you put all the damages done to the bar under his tab, I'm sure he won't mind"

"like Hell I will, bloody pirate has cost me more than Rumpelstiltskin last time he got drunk" Ed grunted then looked at Hook who was sending him a get-away-from-my-wench glare and bunched up his fists "you better deal with him your highness, or I swear I'll wipe the damned smirk off his pretty pirate face, that I will"

"there she is mates, isn't this the most lovely wench in the whole town mates?, you are aren't you princess!" Hook bellowed loudly, she was looking darn pretty, all messed up, with her hair held in a side-braid like she just got up, (which considering she probably had only made it all more attractive) and darn Ed should have known better than to call her here, but of course the crass idiot didn't so to hell with it, he was going to enjoy this.

"Hook you _are_ drunk" She said glaring at him, taking in his disheveled black shirt and leather jacket, he had a cut on his lip and jaw, but otherwise looked in a normal shape "come on, I'll get you to your yacht, did you dock the Phoenix at the pier like the last time?" she continued wrinkling her nose in disgust at the smell of him.

"Don't like the smell princess?" He winked mockingly, Because to her that was the big problem right?, the fact he reeked of rum and scotch and probably ten thousand other drinks, not the fact she was standing in a bar full of leery men dressed only in a purple trench coat he was itching to open, and if he was itching to do it, then the rest of the bloody idiots in the bar probably where as well "And aye the Phoenix is docked in the same place, not that I'll leave with you, wush having too munh fun love, too muh fun" his voice slipped and he began slurring again.

Aurora who really had no qualms about doing what she was about to do, stepped really close to him raised her hand, and tough he saw the slap coming, he didn't put up much of a fight when he felt the sting of her hand in his cheek, "Listen to me, because I am going to say this only once" she said in a low commanding voice "you are coming with me, and you are coming now, because else I'm staying here, half-dressed, and sleepy until either you get your person off the bar stool or someone offers me a ride home for all my troubles" then she turned to the men behind him and pointed "which I'm guessing most of them are eager to do"

"Try and I'll break the first bloody bastard's bones who lays a hand on you" he snapped not slurring once, because damn him to the darkest pits of Tartarus but he was the type of man who didn't like to share his property.

"I take it that means we are leaving" she replied dodging having to reply, getting up and heading for the door.

"aye, lass we are" funny how one word of her lips to anger him could clear all traces of drunk from his system, leaving him alert and feeling like a fool, how hammered would he have to be to get this from the bartender?, a call to the object of his every fucking troubles "see that's the woman Smee" he said lowly to his former first mate pointing to Aurora's retreating back, as Smee limped with him to the door "the one who dislikes boats, hates the sea, doesn't care for adventures, and whose definition of freedom is being tied down in one place"

"total opposites Cap'ain" Smee agreed wholeheartedly

"Then why the hell do I feel so bloody wretched when she's not around?"

Smee didn't answer and Hook, didn't want him to.

Both knew why.

::::::::::::::::::::::...::::::::::::::::::::::::: ::::::::::::::::::::...::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::...

"Coming to rescue the pirate Aurie, didn't you have an essay to write?" Aurie he liked calling her that, not as personal as Aurora, but not as mocking as princess either, and he knew she liked it too, after being practically dragged to the deck of his yacht "the Phoenix", in silence, he had finally gotten tired of her ice law.

"I'll write it later Kill, there's still a few hours" on the contrary when she called him Kill, it sounded way better and even a little attractive.

"Captain's quarters are below deck love, care to come down for a look"

"no thank you, if it means going down there with you I'd rather let you sleep here and wake up at noon with terrible sunburn" she knew how to play his game, the game where he flirted and she retailed with another topic, she was too smart, and he respected her for it, but it made things very difficult when he was trying to get a read on her.

"you wound me"

"I'm not that kind of girl pirate, thought we had established that" Aurora rolled her eyes, because if she ever let herself consider it, just for a second, then she would be lost, and it was a scary way of feeling, so much was at stake, not just her heart, the entire town would one day be hers according to Regina, if she did this...if she let herself think about it, then by the gods she will end in a very bad situation.

"then why, did you come here today?" He whispered slowly edging closer to her, not stumbling on his boots or slurring, his voice silky and deceptive "why help a pirate, your highness?"

"I thought you where drunk" she referred to both then and now, tough now would be a nice moment, since he was getting closer and closer to her personal space, his eyes daring her to step back, because if she didn't he would take it as an invitation, but if she did he would brand her a coward.

"my point exactly" He said his face inches from hers, he lowered his face to her shoulder and whispered into her shivering neck "you knew I was drunk, and you still came for me"

"why are you doing this?, why me?" she whispered too, his nose graced her neck just inches above her ear but never did his mouth touch her, making her both angry and relieved at once.

"I'll be damned if I know" he cursed, and Aurora shivered, her hands reaching up to put themselves in his chest "you smell very good princess" Hook taunted withdrawing his face from her neck at the slight push of her hands, still he kept his eyes on her "tell you a secret? I'm not nearly as drunk as you would believe"

"I thought you said you didn't like to deflower innocents" Aurora murmured looking up to his deep dark eyes, their gazes colliding like silver and coal meeting in a clash of thunder and ice

"you are making it mighty difficult right now" his arms trailed down her neck to her open coat, finding the space in her shoulder where the white nightgown peeked from under her dark blue dress, and darn him to hell because he knew exactly what that white strip of fabric was, and it was making him want to take the princess below deck and really brand her as his "almost impossible" he repeated caressing the white lace in the border of the strip of exposed nightgown

"you think you are not?" she mumbled, her hand trailing from its place in his chest to feel the contours of his muscles, reaching up to the small drop of blood leaking from the cut on his lip, her eyes all too aware of their texture "so much pain" she might have been talking of what he had caused, or of his bloody lip, or of what she perceived in him altogether, but it made her catch her breath and wish... "I sometimes wish, it was easier" And the way her nimble delicate fingers trailed over his face made him remember, and curse himself because they were soft, and small, and beautiful, closing his eyes he savored the moment, before the storm.

"don't stop" he sighed as her index finger touched each one of the scars and bruises he had gotten that night, his eyes still closed he could feel her getting ready to run, Killian had learned to read his little princess so well.

"you should sleep" She whispered and his own hands that had been slowly caressing her shoulder and feeling the shivers that ran trough her at the movement trailed down her back and pulled her closer

"Aye I really should" he mumbled, had it been any other time he would have twisted that into an invitation to join him in bed, but as it was, he wanted to keep the fragile peace he had achieved with her and did the wise thing by keeping silent.

"I have a prom to plan, I really should get going" She sighed finally dropping her hand and stepping away "and that Harvard essay, plus there's that thing with the wedding of Mulan and Phillip" she looked into his eyes, with something akin to remorse and he suddenly knew that if he opened his arms just a little she would step right into them and ask him that difficult question both had been dreading... her eyes where pleading for him to lower his pride and ask her to stay, but she knew better... so she sipped away from him and hurried way, gracefully descending from the boat.

"why do you always run away Aurora?, what are you so scared of?" Killian called after her once she was down at the pier, but he wasn't ready for her answer.

"it's not cowardice Killian, when it comes to you, it's called self-preservation" she shouted back, and turned on her heel, because she didn't like the feeling of having him rip her heart out without needing any magic at all.

That night Killian wanted to shout at whatever karma had seen fit to punish him in the form of Aurora, he could see how it was the perfect retaliation from the universe in hindsight. The first woman he had ever loved chose to run away from her responsibilities by running away with her heart, (him) ... And Aurora, would rather wholeheartedly bury herself in responsibility if it meant she could run away from her heart, (from him).

That was the problem, he briefly wondered if the crocodile hadn't orchestrated this, with his manipulative ways, have him fall in love with the woman who was further away from Milah as the sun was from the moon. Because he had known how to woo Milah right away, he was a natural at the things she wanted, they both at the moment had been wishing for the same thing, but when it came to Aurora things turned out to be the opposite, since he had come to learn, the things she wished for where not anything he was a natural at.

Milah had loved the sea, just like him, she had wanted adventure, to run away from her cripple husband and start a life of freedom somewhere she wasn't known, hell she had given birth before, and raised a child, experienced in more ways than one.

But Aurora, Aurora was innocent, she hated boats and the sea, coming from the land of sands, she didn't care for neither adventure not freedom, what she cared about was Storybrooke, she was one of those rare sedentary ones, that believed freedom meant staying in one place being known and loved by those who know who she really was, she didn't want a new life, she already had one she liked, she didn't want adventure because that would mean leaving so many people she cared about, she was life, hope, pride and endurance, her great adventure was learning to love the people around her, she had spent so much time asleep, that once she was awake her big dream was not rebuilding her kingdom but regaining what she used to have there, the warmth and love of so many good people that she had loved in return, nothing easy things like running away, she wanted exactly what Killian had taken from so many men...From many women too, hell even from the crocodile.

A place in the world that was hers alone to protect.

Most of all, while Milah had been as guilty as him of many sins, Aurora was an pure, white as the sea foam that crashed on Maine's coasts, she certainly had her flaws, but her pride would always stand in the way of her doing something that wasn't entirely for the sake of good.

So if this was the crocodile's way of taking revenge, it certainly carried a bit of poetic justice to it, the woman he would never have dared to look at twice for all the previously cited reasons had turned out ultimately by force of fate, becoming the one that he couldn't get out of his head.

Which was bad.

Really bad.

Regina wanted her as her successor in town's hall for the devil's sake, that's how bad the situation was, the woman was Harvard bound, essay or not, Regina would find a way to get her precious new protege in, and Aurora was convinced studying politics was the right thing to do. Not to mention she was running away from him, and the more times she ran, the more he was sure she felt some degree of something for him and the more he was sure, the more he wanted to chase her.

Aurora knew she was running, better yet, she knew he knew she was running, but falling inlove with a pirate was something she never thought she would do, part of her wanted to hate him, for creeping up on her, every night on the docks when she couldn't sleep, for showing he was capable of being caring, for opening up to her when she desperately needed to keep him as the one dimensional villain that had stolen her most precious organ that day in Cora's dungeons.

But he wasn't, and he was more than what she thought he was, which made her fall little by little, she knew he had an ulterior motive for befriending her, this was why she didn't want to give in. Because he was a pirate and she didn't want to get hurt, losing Phillip had almost killed her once.

Being betrayed a second time by Killian would only drive her to tyranny and Storybrooke didn't deserve that. Her heart said there was another choice, that he could chose her instead of whatever was being offered to him, but Aurora deep down wasn't as brave as people believed, she had gotten hurt once and was terrified of being hurt again..

but she loved him and day by day he found ways to trick her into meeting him no matter how much she wished to stay away.

She knew that her resolve to step away everytime he invited her in, was very close to crumbling, there where many reasons why she should stand firm, cief of all the fact he wasn't someone she should trust, but her heart was conflicted, and little by little he was wearing down her resistance...Maybe the next time he did it, she just might give in and let him kiss her.

**AN: This fanfic started like this:**

**Kayla: Elle tell me a bedtime story pleasee pretty please you know I like to hear you tell me stories**

**Me: but why don't you like your storybooks**

**Kayla: but your stories are way much better, can you pleaseee can you**

**Me: you are absolutel the cutest thing ever, fine I'll tell you but you have to promise we are not staying up past midnight**

**Kayla: yayyyy I love you big sister, now tell me a story like the last one when Belle fell inlove with Rumple-tish-kin or the other one when Jack turned out to be a girl, that is so much more fun than my storybook.**

**Me: you know what I've been toying around with a Sleeping Hook idea for a while, maybe I'll tell you the story and see if you like it**

**Kayla: what is Sleeping Hook big sister? **

**Me: it's when Aurora and Hook get together and fall inlove, and remember my (and ABC's) version of hook is hot * shows picture in phone***

**Kayla: so he doesn't have a yucky beard, and why is Aurora a brunette is that picture Elle?**

**Me: because brunette's are cooler, just look at us we are both brunette's right?**

**Kayla: oh okay, so how do they fall inlove.**

**Me: well first of all Phillip and Mulan get together and decide they want to get married**

**Kayla: why? Where is Shang isn't he the one inlove with Mulan? *makes a face***

**Me: (crap I didn't think she would notice) ahhh he got burnt to crisp by Maleficient while helping Mulan and prince Phillip kill her?  
**

**Kayla: How did Shang die? isn't he supposed to be a warrior?**

**Me: well Maleficent had Rumplestilskin's help**

**Kayla:why?**

**Me *annoyed*: because he's the dark one, I don't know, he wanted to spite his ex, the queen of hearts.**

**Kayla: but I don't want Shang to die Ellie**

**Me: he has to, and if he doesn't I'm only going to make him fall inlove with prince Thomas  
**

**Kayla: isn't prince Thomas a guy?**

**Me: listen Kayls I know you are six but everybody knows Shang has dubious sexual orientation, one day you where going to find out.**

**Kayla: is this because he fell inlove with Mulan thinking she was a guy?. you think he's weird?  
**

**Me: what if she hadn't been a girl in disguise?. Can you imagine how akward that would have been after the war?**

**Kayla: you are right big sister, Shang was weird boy.**

**This fic started and is dedicated to My little sister Kayla who is six years old but by far the most adorable and inteligent little girl in the world, she always asks "why" and "how" and helps me with the struggling plots I disguise as bedtime stories, one day she will grow up and won't worship the floor I walk on, but untill then, I like to know she's the one person in the world who will listen to my stories and won't judge me for it.**

**comment and favorite.**


	2. Chapter 2: Aura Thorne

**So hi peeps, I'm a pretty hardcore sleeping hook fan, but haven't written any fanfics about it because I figured, there where people out there that could always do better than me in that department, normally I just scoure the web for SH moments and comment on it, but lately...there hasn't been anything out there to comment on, so I figured I would write something Sleeping Hook just to prove I could, note: I'm a Sarah Bolger fan, also a Collin O'Donahue fan, ever since the tudors. (they belong together dearies)**

**this like most of my fics was supposed to be a oneshot, but yet again I have proven my utter incapability of writing short things **

**if you want to know in what video I based my fic it's called:**

**This is my kingdom come.[Hook and Aurora] **

**Look for it in youtube and watch if you want to understand where my fic comes from better **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, except the mirad of OC's appearing here.**

**Chapter 2: in which Aura Thorne can't sleep **

Au brief background : when the ordeal with dark Peter Pan was over things settled down in both Storybrooke and the enchanted forest, Storybrooke's magic was drained back to the enchanted forest

with the exception of one sole (permanent) portal for emergencies and the Storybrooke Enchantment (that both gave false identities to newcomers and "forcefully" prevented outsiders from finding out about magic)

So after the war people where given a choice, those who wanted to live in the the Enchanted Forrest had to be willing to help rebuild their homes, and those who stayed in Storybrooke (or wanted to travel there) had to also willingly embrace their false identities and accept everything the "enchantment" gave them. So yes some people stayed some people went back home, win win.

Aurora was awake once again, walking down miffin street for what seemed the thirty seventh time in the past months, oh how she wished for a sleeping pill..but of course Victor would no longer give her prescriptions, one talk with Archie and there he went, thinking Aurora could abuse the pills.

No not Aurora.

Aura, Aura Thorne, that was her name now. She liked to correct.

She knew some things in this land without magic hadn't changed thanks to the enchantment, she was still the niece of king Midas, although here his name was Andrew King, and he was as far from a king in Storybrooke than she was from being a princess.

For starters Aura Thorne was an orphan and according to her fake memories had lived with her uncle King during her whole life (big surprise), her false identity claimed she was a overachiever in her senior year of high school, student council president, she wanted to go to an Ivy league college, Princeton actually, if the posters in the walls of her fake bedroom where correct, (how cliche Rapunzel had snickered when she found out), she was head of the homecoming committee and had even briefly dated Sean Herman before he "hooked up" with Ashley and dropped out of school to take care of his pregnant girlfriend and find a job.

Her only coisin was still Abigail Midas, although here she was named Kathryn King (nee Nolan), she had apparently gone to Katrynn and David's wedding when they had "gotten married" and the pictures that lined the walls of the King household depicted them as close, her parents had been Jennifer and Matthew Thorne, wealthy co-owners of the local chain of grocery stores, which Mr Gold had bought after their deaths, in a plane crash when she was five, leaving her a large trust fund for college only her uncle had access to until she graduated from high-school.

All these perfect memories where lies of course, lies the curse, sorry, enchantment, had created to accommodate Aurora into it's perfectly crafted deception, her real mother died at childbirth and her father of old age when she went under the sleeping curse, like the rest of her beloved kingdom.

Abigail and her where far from close and although her uncle Midas did love her like a daughter, they hadn't seen each other since a long time ago, another consequence of both the sleeping curse and the dark curse.

Now that had changed, almost a year after she had made the choice to live in Storybrooke, Midas and her had developed a very good uncle/niece relationship.

She hadn't wanted to leave the enchanted forest when the Charmings had declared the dark shadow defeated, but when Rumplestilskin had opened a permanent portal between their two worlds for those who wished to stay in Storybrooke to live lives without magic, it had been a overheard conversation between Red Riding Hood and Dr Victor Frankenstein that had made her decide the opposite.

flashback

_"Do you really to stay?" the doctor had asked his companion_

_"I do, Snow White is my friend, and they will need help rebuilding the kingdom"_

_"but they don't need you to be here to do it" Victor had pleaded "you heard them, it's over, they have the dwarfs, the fairies, Snow and Charming are going to be fine"_

_"what about me? How am I going to cope every full moon?" Red had sounded so unsure that Aurora had felt bad for intruding in their private moment._

_"I'm sure Rumplestilskin would be more than accommodating to help with that Red, after all you did save the life of his true love" then Victor had taken Red's hand "look, in Storybrooke, we get another chance, there's no magic to harm you, no lynch mobs, the worst danger we'll get there are taxes"_

_"Do you really think we could start over in Storybrooke? After everything we have done, so much has happened"_

_"Yes!" he'd cried "it's all over now Red, all the threats, I'm asking you to come with me" he extended his hand "there we don't have to be Red riding hood and Dr Frankestein, the werewolf and the monster maker, let's start over" the doctor had smiled "in a place where we are just Red and Victor"_

_then Red had looked into his eyes and smiled "just Red and Victor, is that even possible?"_

_Dr Frankestein smirked "is that a yes?" And Red had nodded with all her might as tough Victor had just proposed._

flashback end

Aurora hadn't wanted to overhear, but they had both sounded so hopeful, when Aurora had left the Enchanted Forrest many had asked her why she did, she didn't think people would understand. She herself didn't understand why sometimes.

All she knew was that all her life she'd been raised to be a princess, to rule as a queen someday over the sand kingdom, but her kingdom was gone, and her true love, Phillip, was now in-love with another.

The question back then had only been, how do you tell the love of your life you know he has fallen out of love with you?.

She hadn't cried when Phillip's kiss no longer held the taste of curse breaking magic it had before the wraith took him, a princess never cried, that was in her book of etiquette, Cora had told her his soul was sent to another realm thanks to the wraith, but even then Aurora had known something had happened to his spirit, where had Phillip's spirit gone when not in his body?, she couldn't help but wonder until she saw how he was looking at Mulan when he thought she wasn't looking, then she understood.

Yes Phillip loved her, she had an inkling he always would, but his spirit was more attached to Mulan than he cared to admit. And that, broke the sand princess's heart. When had their union become one of duty?.

She wanted happiness for Phillip and Mulan of course, (the happiness of others would always matter above her own, especially if it was concerning the two people she cared about the most) but she knew they could never be trully happy as long as she was there, they would feel they where betraying her and could never trully enjoy eachother's love.

At that time, Aurora had heard Riding hood and Frankestein talking so earnestly and wondered herself.

Would it really be so bad to start over? Somewhere else. To give Phillip and Mulan the chance to live their love?.

Would it really be so bad to leave everything bad behind and start anew?. Even when it broke her heart?

Would it really be so bad to be someone else?.

So she'd left, stepped trough the portal with Red and Victor and Regina herself, the former who had given her a rather amused smile that Aurora had returned with a haughty look.

This was why she found herself here, a year later, walking aimlessly down miffin street in a effort to keep insomnia at bay, another fun fact the curse accommodated for her, the inability to sleep she had, now rechristened as acute insomnia, back then when the enchantment had hit, and Aurora had been bombarded with so many false memories at once that left her in the hospital for days, she had asked herself once again, if it would it be bad to embrace it?, for the girl who had been raised to lead armies and fight courtiers with both grace and dignity, would it be so hurting to embrace Aura Thorne?, this young woman who went to a place called highschool and listen to a strange device her memories claimed was an I-pod, that looked like her in her memories but lacked both the corset and the tiara?.

Aurora had thought back to Phillip and Mulan.

_No it wouldn't be so hard._

"So still here huh, I thought after all this time you would finally be learning how to sleep like a normal human being" A voice broke her out of her reverie Aurora looked up, and saw Regina in her black heeled glory smirking at her, while exiting her home.

"Madame mayor" Aurora regarded her with shocked nod, that of one who knows she's an equal but can't prove it "Insomnia can do that to people"

Regina laughed when she saw Aurora eying her up and down from head to toe and looking at the clock "don't look so shocked Aura, I have nocturnal activities too you know"

"I wasn't doing anything of that sort" she replied because she really didn't want to imagine what kind of things the town's mayor could be doing dressed to kill at two AM, there was a rumor floating around about her and a certain man but, Aura would just rather not speculate about the queen. "as you know I live just a couple of houses down"

"I know, I hear you are about to graduate from highschool darling" Aura didn't understand why Regina was doing chit chat in the middle of her driveway at that hour but as she'd come to learn, when the nights where dark and late, things rarely made sense. "any thought on what you are going to do after graduation?" she said it in such a mocking tone Aura squared her shoulders and raised her chin

"I am going to an Ivy league college Madame mayor, but of course you already knew that didn't you" she said in her haughty princess tone

"yes Midas hasn't shut up about your early admission into Princeton since you received it last week, makes council meting so tedious, but I'm told Harvard is still an option" Aura's eyes widened, she hadn't beeped a word to a soul about Harvard, how did she know "makes one wonder about why that admission letter is taking so long" Regina continued "bahh don't look so surprised honey, it's my town, I know everything that goes on"

Suddenly Aurora remembered the time she'd left her backpack in the sofa of her uncle's house only to find Regina there when she came to look for it "You had no right to go trough my things!" she ghasped "those notes where private"

"you mean the ones that say you are not sure what career to pick? Poor Midas, he'll be so disappointed, Abigail is already back in law school you know"

"this conversation is over, I refuse to let you mock me"

"Did I sound that way Aura?, I'm sorry" the evil queen apologized heading towards her car "one year later and I still can't seem to have a conversation with someone without him or her getting defensive, I didn't mean to offend you" and suddenly Aurora regarded Regina with a puzzled expression maybe she had misread the whole situation "Old habits are hard to kick, I'm sure you understand that"

"what did you mean then if I may be so bold as to ask, Re-Madame Mayor" One year later and still Aurora couldn't bring herself to address Regina by her given name, the queen was right, old royal habits where hard to shake.

"what I meant was, that if you really are undecided about what to study, politics in Harvard is something I know you would excel at" she winked "after all how long can getting a degree take?, five? six years? In that time, who knows, maybe I will be up for retirement"

"you don't mean" the younger girl gaped "are you implying you would want me to run for mayor?" she asked cutting the chase "why?"

"straight to the point darling, I like that, and to answer your question I don't know a more qualified applicant," The queen said offhandedly "my son is more of the type to run off in search for ogres than sit down to negotiate with Gold how to avoid raising taxes, the Charmings are all in the Enchanted forrest and before leaving Storybrooke on the hands of any old money miser like Midas or George I would rather self destruct the whole town myself" Regina said vehemently "I have been watching you for a while, you are different from the other blundering princesses I considered"

"thank you, I think" the sand princess nodded regally still puzzled

Regina eyed her up and down from the jewel studded hair bow in her hair to the purple ballerina flats in her feet and got on with her proposition "you are a royal born, raised for this job, you know what it takes and that the sacrifices one sometimes has to make, can and will be unappreciated by most" Regina shrugged "if I didn't know it would be taken as an insult I would tell you I see a lot of myself in you, well, the good part of myself"

"I am flattered your highness, I never knew you thought about me that way, I don't know what to say" Aura replied with the same amount of both humilty and pride

"don't say anything then, just think about it" Regina sighed dismissing her comment "Henry will need me to retire in a couple of years, presumably to raise my grandchildren and you where born a princess, even in those clothes one can tell you are a royal from miles away, so remember that if you ever need a job, I'm in need of a new assistant in city hall"

Aurora knew what Regina was implying, so she nodded regally "thank you Regina, I will think about it, I promise I will" it was flattering really, it gave her enough courage to call the queen by her given name, her head always held high she returned Regina's proud smile with one of her own.

"good, ohh and Aurora" Regina said almost as an after thought Opening the door to her car and getting in, the former evil queen leftover wikedness couldn't resist one tiny jab at her "Hook's been back in town for a week, last time we spoke...he asked me about you"

Needless to say that after that very disturbing comment Aura turned on her heel and walked, no, ran, back to her house, the sole memory of the conniving pirate strong enough to make her wish for a door and a lock between her and the world that held him.

**You all know the drill, comment and speak up I like to hear about you all.**


	3. Chapter 3: in which Killian Jones

**AN: No reviews for last chapter? Really?**

**I don't own OUAT, I just own the ton of OC's that now live in Storybrooke.**

**Chapter 3: in which Killian Jones makes his first appearance**

Aura Thorne had a big house, one would assume since it was a common practice, that when she came to live with Midas it would be her who would move into the garden house in the back of the property, not that Midas (mindful and eccentric) would willingly insist she have the place to herself while he moved into the cozy cottage built right next to his greenhouse, but Midas was like that, he had a tendency to like bizarre things, so if he said he wanted the garden house, he would have the garden house.

Which often left Aura feeling as alone as she had during her twenty eight year sleep, her uncle was not there now, he was in Boston visiting Abigail and Frederic, Aura contemplated briefly calling Ruby or Hazel (formerly known as Rapunzel) to keep her company, no, Ruby was running a diner it would be unfair to call her and Hazel's mother would raise her screams to heaven if she called now.

That night Aura watched late night television, rolled over in her bed, made cookies, went to bed and couldn't sleep again, she got up, wrote a paper that wasn't due until two weeks later, watched spam videos on YouTube, listened to music, rearranged the four guest bedrooms, made a card for Emma's upcoming birthday, and just generally wished Victor hadn't banned her from asking for Xanax ever again.

The truth was, Regina's comment about Hook, (aka: captain Killian Jones, aka: the heart-thieving Asshole that owned the Jolly Roger, Aka: the best of all manwhores in the land) had rattled her more than she cared to admit. Only hearing his name and she could see behind her eyelids the devious smirk on his face when she'd discovered he had taken her heart, the jerk deserved to rot in hell in Aura's opinion.

Morning came much more later than normal for her considering all her boredom but Aura was glad, dressing up in her Storybrooke Academy uniform, she took her time combing her hair and adding a jeweled hair bow, not long after she heard the beep of (Rapunzel) Hazel's car outside "Aura come on, Ryder (Eugene) is waiting at granny's with Kyle (Kai from the snow queen)"

"And he promised to buy me breakfast hurry up" Marina (the little mermaid) whined next to her, her fiery red hair making a contrast with Hazel's pixie brown locks.

"Coming girls" Aura shouted back.

Inside granny's Ruby greeted the threesome with a smile "the usual Ruby, plus something sugary for Marina, Kai here is paying the bill" Hazel sang boisterous sitting in the first booth while Marina took out her IPod

"you HAVE to listen to this song Aura" She said taking out a pair of portable speakers, Ryder Flynn popped up behind them his hair and uniform fashionably ruffled leather jacket in tow and put his arms around Hazel.

"Two weeks until graduation everybody raise your hand if you are exited" Kai boomed bringing over Marina's massive order making sure not to stain his football team letterman jacket "Kudos for me if I get Goldilocks to be my date for prom" the three girls in the table snorted, Olivia Duquesne aka Goldilocks, was the academy's "easy" girl (slut and general whore where also words Marina liked to use to describe her), and according to Aura's fake memories, her rival in the running for prom queen since childhood, golden haired, long legged and with perchance for hiking up her skirt, she could be a rival for Aurora's universally known beauty, if she didn't sleep with everything that moved and dressed like a drag queen.

"People tone it down, I got other customers in here" Granny came to their table to glare

"Sorry Granny" Aura apologized for all of them and watched Granny leave with just a curt nod. "Guys watch it; I don't want to be thrown out"

Because this was the life of Aura Thorne, she was beautiful, rich, popular and the leader of her very own clique, she listened to Lady Gaga and her friends went out to party every weekend, suddenly Ruby's voice rang out with her name "Aura, your coffee's ready"

"So has Victor said anything yet?" Aura wondered eyeing Ruby's finger suspiciously

Roby fidgeted nervous, Belle had confided to both of them she'd seen Victor come in Rumple's pawnshop to ask for a ring, but that had been a week ago...

"Aren't you supposed to be worried about, I don't know, your admission letter to Harvard?"

"Don't dodge the question" Aura asked, Victor had been quite sketch lately even to her "did he say something to granny is this what it's all about"

"Speaking of granny" suddenly Roby seemed to see something that made her blanch "Aura, I well, I wanted to tell you something since a while now, and it's never been the time and well, Granny she told me to tell you"

"Ruby, what's wrong"

"remember how Granny went home a few days ago, and you said to bring her news and well she did bring news and it's complicated so I wanted to tell you and oh gosh" Ruby rambled on giving Aura her coffee deciding it was better to get it over with "Aura... Phillip and Mulan are getting married next month"

the shock was evident on her face, Aura Thorne had tried her best to forget she was Aurora of the sands for so long, she'd been doing a very good job, curse Ruby for making her crack, why did she have to hear it from Ruby?, didn't they care enough for her to send an invitation?, her smile slipped a bit, but like the last time, Aura remembered, princesses did not cry in public. "I am very happy for them"

Turning around she tried to make a quick dash for the both where her friends where still singing Lady Gaga when she slammed into someone's chest spilling all her coffee into her uniform, "what the hell? You jerk what's wrong with you?" she screeched looking up and glaring at whoever did this

"It seemed to me it wasn't I who wasn't watching my feet love" Hook's roguish voice replied amused "I would give you a hand princess but as you can see" he showed her his for once hook-less left hand.

"If you did give me a hand, I'd be a fool to accept it, Pirate!" Aura replied every ounce haughty getting up on her own, "And my name is not princess, FYI it's Aura, Aura Thorne, and if you can't be bothered to learn it, then it's sucks to be mentally impaired" Aura noticed he wasn't dressed like a pirate either, gone was the guyliner and the leather clothes, instead, he was wearing a long sleeved shirt buttoned shirt, it was black, naturally, along with his jeans, and his shoes while clearly expensive didn't look anything like the boots she'd seen on him last, nothing fancy, but seeing him as a normal un-fairytaled version of himself, suddenly made Aura's heart beat a little faster.

"pretty words, it doesn't change the fact I can see the color of your bra from here lass" motioned to the dark coffee stain in her white uniform shirt and the fact it did make her chest almost see trough, Aura raised her hand to slap him, but he caught it "and FYI as you said, I have a name too" he said sardonically and stepped away from her watching the fire behind her grey blaze furiously.

"How dare him" Aura had screeched to Hazel, who had swooned at the sight of "that delicious stranger" but Aura hadn't, he once again had irked her to no end.

"Did you see her? Aurora?" Regina asked Killian once the pirate had returned, she'd sent him pursefully to the diner to watch Aurora and her friends, she was being serious when she said she wanted the girl to be Mayor once she retired, but she had to be trained, and who better to judge her future replacement than Hook himself, it had been funny tough that it had been he who had asked about Aurora first when she called him, made her wonder what the pirate really thought about the sand princess.

"Yes I did bloody see her"

"And what do you think?"

"she's still as haughty, beautiful and prideful as she was when I saw her last, no surprise there" no she wasn't the same girl he'd seen when he saw her last, but telling Regina that would be like admitting to murder in the supreme court, Aurora had been just as prideful, that he'd been telling the truth, but he could see she had changed, her guarded eyes once holding so much love now held pain, she looked stronger, leading the flock of silly teenagers that followed her like a true queen, Killian could almost remember how it felt to hold her heart in his hand, each single heartbeat, and for as long as she was a live he would remember, because he had the power to take one heart once, and out of selfishness at the time, he had taken hers.

But again, he was a pirate; it's what they did, so he wouldn't regret it.

"She's rather like me in that sense don't you think?"

"Lass's nothing like you Regina love don't fool yourself"

"Haughty, beautiful and prideful, in what sense she doesn't resemble me? broken hearted?, check, orphaned? Check, betrayed by people she trusted?" Regina sent Killian a look "check, beautiful beyond comparison, check, with a grudge against someone?" again she leveled a gaze at Hook "a small one but check too, lonely in a big world? check, all she needs to be like me is both magic and a black heart"

"Proves my point don't you think? She has too much damned pride to let herself succumb to darkness, her best friend is getting married to her prince and she doesn't care for Poseidon's sake" not entirely true He had watched her receive the news from the wolf girl and again seen the vulnerability slither trough her face like a ripple in a calm ocean, but he had told Regina a piece of it, the girl had too much damned pride in her.

"Pride only makes her a better choice, it's a sign of royalty, as I said all she needs to be perfect is a little bit of black in her heart" the queen smiled "this is where you come in"

"You want me to blacken her heart?"

"No, that would be wrong, and I told you I'm not about that type of thing anymore, I just want you to, um let's say ahh learn her soul's price, in a very benevolent sort of way of course"

"The price of her soul?"

"I need the girl to be willing to stay here forever Hook, and to do that I need to know what would it take for her to do so, she needs to cut ties with everything that binds her home but more than that she needs something that binds her here"

"such as?, it seemed to me she was doing pretty well with the whole cutting ties thing" she looked completely at home in this land, he wouldn't tell Regina he had seen her come and go from time to time during the week he had been in Storybrooke, no that would mean admitting he was interested in what happened to the girl.

"I was doing well with the whole cutting ties thing too when I was her age and all it took for me to turn into a monster was a little push from Rumplestilskin" Regina snapped "I want you to make her face her unresolved issues, everything, rub her failures in her face if you will, but make her get over it, figure out what Aurora wants, that one thing I need to offer her she desires above anything else, the price of all prices, the thing that would buy her very soul"

"the price of the soul of a princess must be a little high don't you think, I don't think she would ever tell that kind of secret to me" he knew what she was talking about and he didn't like it "why haven't you figured out the big secret by yourself already Regina?, she's been here for a while now, it wouldn't be hard to figure out exactly what she would sell her soul for, after all you have the resources love"

"Because Aurora isn't the average person, she can't be bought by the usual suspects, I have tried" Regina snapped

"really?, she doesn't want money or power or magic?, that's a new one" he snorted raising an eyebrow, yes indeed, maybe the lady haughtiness had more to her than simply pride, so he grinned at Regina.

"I have offered those, subtlety of course, but they don't appeal to her and I can't think of a thing that brat would want more than true love, but Rumple told me there is something and since I can't very well do a stakeout on her for the next five years I need you to goad her into telling what it is, so I can offer it to her and make sure she can freely and willingly get out of Storybrooke to study politics and take over the town once she graduates"

"A bit ambitious plan don't you think?" Killian mocked but then again he knew Regina was nothing if not ambitious and if she said she wanted Aurora as a successor the she probably would do everything in her power to make it happen "If I do that, you will tell me where in the devils the crocodile hid the Jolly Roger?"

"Better than that, I will personally lead you up the deck" Regina smiled; yes this one was the man for the job. "And return this" she flashed him his silver hook "to its rightful owner darling Captain"

"Then you have an agreement your highness" Hook bowed dramatically before her "bad habits die hard don't they love?"

"You have no idea"

Killian hated to be manipulated, normally he could dance and twist deals into his favor with a flash of his smile but darn the crocodile to hell for taking the Jolly Roger as a guarantee he wouldn't come after him once their truce was over. (He was going to, no doubt about that but curse him all the same). And when Regina, beautiful and vengeful had summoned him with "a favor" to ask him, he never would have guessed it involved princess haughtiness herself.

Aurora, the last time he had seen her was admittedly in less than happy circumstances, and he was sure she was like Regina had implied, holding a small grudge in her heart because he had stolen the organ away on that occasion.

His memories of his persona in Storybrooke certainly didn't make things easier, because apparently he (in this world at least) owned a shipping business, a mildly successful one that brought in cargoes from outside lands to their small town in Maine, of course the Enchantment that had been charmed to make their new lives as close to their old ones had also thrown into his "successful business ventures" a small under wraps mirad of illegal activities, he apparently had grown up with loving parents, (this one made him almost choke) dropped out of school at seventeen, ran away with bad companions, lost his hand experimenting with fireworks on a fourth of July and ended up multiple times in jail (he had records in the Sheriff station for things his pirate pride wouldn't let him be caught dead doing), he had been married and divorced at young age to boot, to a gal named Casey, (formerly known as Aquamarine, the eldest daughter of ex-king Triton), the funny part was that their supposedly divorce had been because she had found him cheating on her with her twin sister Melanie (also known as Coral, the second mermaid sister), he had to admit everything the enchantment had fed him so far did sound like him.

From his supposedly cad-ish behavior to his first wife, to the trouble stirred up for the RIP Sheriff Graham, he had watched the memories play on in his head like a very amusing movie, they even included a feud with the crocodile, or Mr. Gold as he was known in that world, not over a woman of course, but over something more basic, and close to the truth, a boat, Gold had in their fake life, done a real arsony number on his first and more important ship, (ironically named "Lady Milah"), when he had started his "business", and Killian had been trying to get back at him ever since, then there had been a few memories of non-existent "trysts" he'd had with women in town, (including yes, Regina herself, he was sure she somehow had a hand in that), and just generally living the life of an everyday magic less man. How he was beginning to hate Storybrooke's "tame", version of Killian Jones.

But there was one thing that was nice in this world; Killian walked down the docs that night and a small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, watching the gleaming black surface of his yacht in the distance.

It was a beautiful yacht, aptly named "The phoenix", a vessel fit for only the rich and powerful, he considered it a small sign of fate seeing he was so out of his element, his fake memories claimed the vessel had been a generous gift from a Chinese black market associate after a successful art smuggling venture, but he didn't care, the yacht was his no matter how it was obtained, and it was one of the few things he loved about Storybrooke.

Sure the phoenix wasn't any Jolly Roger, but it was a fine piece of sail all the same.

In the distance he saw a small figure walking in the pier's direction and smiled.

**Guys review, it's no fun when you don't there's the button, now click.**


	4. Chapter 4: Experimentation

**An: this was supposed to be a one-shot so I hope you are happy to know, I'm actually going to finish the story… sometime before September**

**Chapter 4:Experimentation**

_Stage 1:Experimentation_

_Experimentation is defined as the voluntary use of drugs without experiencing any negative social or legal consequences. For many, experimenting may occur once or several times as a way to "have fun" or even to help the individual cope with a problem. For many, experimentation can occur without any desire to continue using the drug. For others, it can start to become a problem when it moves into the next stage of addiction: regular use._

_-taken from "the four stages of drug addiction" by Casa Palmera Staff-_

"So we meet again love fancy seeing you here" the pirate's voice said startling Aurora out of her wits that night, and the princess cursed herself and her feet for leading her to the docs, subconsciously their encounter in the morning must have disturbed her more than she cared.

"I like to walk at night, everybody in Storybrooke knows that" No sense in denying what they both already knew, Storybrooke's citizens where a bunch of gossipmongers.

"Ahh yes, the famous sleeping beauty that can't seem to sleep, life isn't fair is it princess?" he mocked remembering her constant struggles back in the enchanted forest to stay awake for longer than three nights.

Aurora wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing she was well aware her need for sleep was what had given him an opportunity to take her heart in the first place so she turned away "I imagine not" she replied with dignity refusing to look at his face, because it was doing strange things to her heart, not that she would admit that.

"So that is it?, our first conversation since I behaved like a cad with your inner organs and all you say is "I imagine not?" " he mocked her voice with a high pitched tone feeling the sting of her rejection.

"What did you expect sir?" Aura asked glaring her eyes flashing with defiance "Screaming?, shouting?, me asking for an explanation?, or better yet a violent tirade of feeble punches?" oh she wanted to do all that, but her dignity prevented her from doing so, and a long buried part of her whispered that this was probably the best way to aggravate him.

She was right "yes, I admit I expected screaming" Swan would have screamed and gotten violent, Regina, well she would have killed him admittedly, Milah, she would have shouted too, "any normal female would go into a tirade"

Aura smiled haughty "Don't expect much from me pirate, I am not your average woman and you in my eyes are not worth much" Not even my attention she seemed to say

And it was the cold way she said it that made him feel irritated, he had played hokey pokey with her organs!, and here she was, dismissing him like a common servant, Killian Jones thought he deserved at least a tiny bit of anger, for what he had done, a reaction, something other than being stared down by this spoiled brat! he knew he should feel relieved at the fact she seemed to have let go but curse it he couldn't, not when she was looking so darn smug.

"Yes of course I forgot average women haven't slept as much as you have" He smirked, but Aurora only rolled her eyes "you know even Swan would have snapped at me by now" muttered not knowing that was exactly the thing he needed to get a reaction out of her

"I'm sure she would" Aura retorted "especially considering you slept with her Husband's mother, long before you tried to seduce her" the devious smile he swore he would never see in her petty porcelain face suddenly appeared "when you put it that way even I can see where the wanting to murder you would come from"

"So kitty has claws," _how in the world did she know? Ohh right she was friends with Balefire_, the li'l tadpole must have told her thing or two "does you prince know about it?, because last I checked, he was happy dancing on daisy fields with the warrior girl" he fought back more than a little angry, funny how cracking her dignified facade came this close to letting his own temper snap.

"Just like your worst enemy and his new wife I presume" Aura had been a bridesmaid in the Gold's wedding, she was entitled to deliver the blow "how did it feel to know the man with the darkest soul of all still managed to have a happy ending, while you, where left to rot with a pretty empty life?" how dare he mention Phillip, what the heck was his problem, at that moment Aurora wanted to do something to hurt him, so she took every verbal weapon in her arsenal and prepared to fire.

"The same it felt to have your prince do away with your best friend I presume Hun"

"Just as well pirate, at least I got over it, unlike you, still pining away the dead and gone" but as soon as she said that, she knew she shouldn't have used that particular jab.

Killian staggered, looking at Aurora, he thought he could predict her reactions fairy well, but this, this was something he would expect from Maleficent or Regina, maybe the queen wasn't far off in her assumption, that they both might be more alike than he thought "low blow lass, low blow"

"You started it" Aura snapped, "Pirate"

Then she dropped her eyes to the ground, realizing her actions, she really didn't like to snap at people like that, but he had touched a very sensitive subject, she didn't like to think about Phillip, because it caused her to feel rejected, remembering how much it had hurt to know that he would love her always, but not enough to tell her the truth about what he really felt, would someone ever love her enough for that?, who was she kidding, she would always be known as the girl Phillip rescued from eternal sleep, not really for who she was, every time someone mentioned Phillip she entertained the feeling that maybe she would never be enough for someone to love her ever again, and those where thoughts a princess should never let in her head.

The silence stretched and neither offered an apology, He was sitting next to her, quite close if she might add, dressed in dark jeans and a dark long sleeved shirt, no hook this time, just a fake hand, Aura wanted to ask why he wasn't dressed in his usual I'm-sexier-than-thou pirate clothes, but asking would be admitting she cared about the answer, and she wouldn't give him the joy of knowing he got to her, besides she could just assume that the enchantment wouldn't let him walk around leather clad from head to toe when Storybrooke hand it's fair share of "new word" tourists...

"I'm sorry" she apologized after much thought, feeling it was the right thing to do, she really wanted to hurt him, she would always feel the need to hurt him for what he had done to her, but in her mind, she could hear the sound on her godmother Merryweather's voice telling her to rise above it and not lower herself to his level, Mulan had told her not to confuse revenge with justice, and Hook, he had already gotten his, it would be useless if she tried to poison her own self with revenge, she'd learnt that with Emma and Snow. "For what I said, I'm sorry"

He didn't reply, or offer an apology back he just looked ahead to the dark cold water before them "I love the sea you know lass, has a sense of freedom in it, funny how I didn't think I would see you here"

"I don't like the sea, if that's what you are implying was my intention by coming here"

"You don't?" Interesting piece of news Hook's eyebrows raised in a questioning sarcastic frown

"Unlike you, the sea has always made me feel trapped, it reminds me of a dungeon" Aurora didn't know why she was telling him this, the whole conversation was stupid nevertheless "there's nowhere to run when you are out there, no left, no right, only the dread of a situation you can't escape by foot, car or horse" exactly like the sleeping curse

"you don't know how to swim well do you?" the princess's eyes went to his face with a frown, Hook shrugged glad they were back in neutral territory "the people I've met that hate the sea, it's because they either don't swim very well, or have suffered at the hands of it, you are from the desert, I'm sure you have never drowned and been revived, so I guessed it was the second"

"It's not any of your business, just know I don't like the sea altogether" He chuckled and regaled her with a amused smirk, as she had with her denial confirmed it to him, but didn't say anything and they were silent again

"why did you do it Hook?" she asked out of nowhere, her small hand coming to her chest right above her heart, he saw the motion and understood "just tell me, please, why did you?"

"Take your heart?"

"No, !save it!, why did you do it?" Mulan had told her what he did, and since nighttime was the time for bizarre conversations she guessed why not ask away, it's not like she was really in danger, she had a can of mace in her pocket in case he got snappy.

"you are not going to ask me why I took your heart, but why I saved it" Killian saw her hand still above her heart and knew that just as he would never forget it, she couldn't either "A very peculiar princess indeed"

"I know why you took it already, I just don't know why you gave it back" Mulan had painted the battle as it had been, without sugarcoating it, but still "Mulan said you were trying to get rid of her, but if you were why not just let my heart fall into the vortex, she would have jumped in to retrieve it, you knew that"

And smart to boot too, he could see it in her eyes, almost as tough she could figure out what he never did "do you know how it feels to hold a heart in your hand princess?" Killian asked instead, Aurora gave him a look "right stupid question, the truth is I don't know why I did it lass, I just figured that if the heart fell in the vortex, I would be doing to someone else what the croc did to me when he took my Milah's heart, had a bit of buyer's remorse" he wouldn't tell her that her heartbeats had haunted him for a while after the warrior girl had taken it back, he wouldn't tell her they sometimes still did "but the truth was, I thought it wasn't fair for you to be caught in the middle of something like that"

Aurora's eyes softened "You didn't deserve it either you know" she didn't look at him, just up at the night sky how was it possible to want to hurt him one second and comfort him the next? "The blood, the pain"

"I did, don't fool yourself" he had taken another man's wife, left Balefire motherless out of selfishness, _he had deserved it,_ funny how it took him so much time to admit it.

"thank you all the same, don't get me wrong I still think you are a man-whore heart-thieving asshole" Aurora pointed out Killian chuckled at that "but you saved my heart, whatever reasons you had, you still saved it" she said with empathy, still not looking at him.

He didn't like her tone, so filled with sincerity, showing him a brief flash of understanding, at least when it was brief he knew where he stood, but if she ever made it a habit of feeling compassion for him, then he would really be angry "now it's my turn to ask you something" the pirate decided he might as well get on with it, pry one of her secrets at a time "why did you leave the enchanted forest?, last time I checked your highness, you didn't seem like the type to run away from your problems"

"It's more complicated than that… certainly a less dramatic story than what most people think" Aurora chuckled and tried to explain "I just...took a look at the big picture, and figured it wasn't worth the heartache" too practical Merryweather too had once said she was, unless of course matters of the heart where addressed.

"again taking the high road, no revenge on your enemies, no, screaming at the prince, no fighting for your forgotten kingdom, even right now, you are talking to me as tough you just met me, not like a hated foe"

"Would you want me to?" Aurora blurted out and immediately regretted it because of the look he was sending her "humor me for a second pirate"

"Fine, let's humor the sleeping princess" he said husky and Aurora pretended it didn't make her heart go as tachycardic as a slacker in an AP Biology test.

"Who are you? I meant here in Storybrooke, the enchantment gives false identities to everyone that comes through the portal" she was curious at last "what did you get?"

"you mean why am I dressed like a normal magic less idiot?" he chuckled seeing right through her "Well princess if you really want to know, I'm still a ship captain, although nothing as fancy as the Jolly Roger" that he would rather not talk about that that moment "my name here is still Killian Jones too, and unlike you who got the golden life ticket, complete with money and home, I supposedly do work for a living"

"Shocking" Aurora tried not to smile at her tiny joke but Hook saw the edges of her mouth go up a bit.

"I am a tradesman, yuck" he said the word like he would a curse spitting in the ground for effect, and Aurora raised an eyebrow "I own one of those big yachts down there and a little fleet of smaller ones" he pointed to the far side of the docs where he knew the Phoenix was "And bring in nice things to Storybrooke, apparently I get along pretty well with Asian tech pirates and illegal art dealers"

"So the enchantment still made you a mercenary, why am I not surprised?"

"It made me an almost honest man! Outrageous thing if you ask me"

"Outrageous? it made you exactly who you where before, just modernized"

"A modernized me would have a gun cabinet" he stopped talking for a second his fake memories filling him in "scratch that, I do have a gun cabinet"

Aurora laughed, and startled Hook because for all the times he had seen her, he never had heard her laugh so freely, she did look quite fetching when she laughed "Well, if you must know, in case you didn't notice in the morning, I am an overachieving rich girl about to graduate that's heading for Princeton"

"As you said love, it didn't change anything at all" he looked up at the stars and suddenly had an idea "Hey princess want to go somewhere else?"

He saw her stiffen "what?"

"Down there to see my yacht, it's really not the Jolly Roger but then again, you never saw my actual ship anyway"

"No, I'm not going anywhere with you" the steel was back in her eyes

"relax love I'm not planning to murder you in it, that's reserved for actual enemies" he smirked and yes he looked very handsome when he did that but there was no way she was getting into any sort of ship with that man, especially after what Belle had told her happened last time. "Besides pirates while not really trustworthy, uphold a code, we don't deflower innocents" he winked "ever"

Aurora's cheeks flamed in embarrassment, was she that obvious? "if I thought it would do any good, by the gods I would slap you in this instant" She gasped outraged, no he was not enjoying watching her eyes widen in fear, no he could not hear her blasted heartbeat from there, no he did not consider her rather pretty, he was there on a mission for Regina that was all (yeah, liar)

"So? my yacht, yes or no?"

"Didn't I just tell you I hated the sea?"

"No you said you didn't really like it"

"Well now I'm telling you I hate it" then she looked at her wristwatch "besides it's four in the morning"

"Fine it was just a thought, I've never needed to beg a woman to enjoy my company before, and I'm not going to start now"

"You sir are a asshole Killian Jones"

"And you are an anal retentive prissy dear Aurora"

Aura didn't reply she just got up from her the bench and made to leave "I'm tired, goodnight pirate"

"you know love, for all the annoyance I think you are I really liked talking to you tonight" he offered "don't take it as an invitation but, if you ever find that tomorrow you can't sleep, well, you can always come by the docs to watch the ocean for a bit" it did sound like an invitation a very, very dirty invitation but they both knew it wasn't...

He'd just said it; he didn't deflower innocents, and if it wasn't evident miles away that Aurora was "innocent" from the tip of her jewel studded hairband to the "y" of her virginity then someone needed to get his eyes checked. She was safe from debauching (no she didn't feel disappointed at the knowledge...not even a little...pinky swear)

So Aura kept walking, and Killian kept smirking.

**AN:**

**superdeedee311: I am very glad you like it and appreciate that you took the time to review, I'm trying to make it a good read so I'm glad that so far it's working. **

**Marene: I'm a big fan of the couple too, and I think they can bring the best of eachother out also, but seeing they are both really stubborn, it might take some time for them to realize it, because they "think" they want different things, Aurora, who is still a princess at heart, wants what's best for the people she loves, while Killian who is still a pirate only wants what's best for him, and like any of the characters in OUAT they have to deal with their skeletons in the closet, they currently aren't thinking about "hey I'm going to fall in love soon", because they have other things in mind and have lives to live and all that, but I think that's the beauty of falling inlove, you don't realize it's happening until it already happened, about Regina's intentions, I'm pretty sure she's got something under her sleeve. Thank you again for your beautiful review I enjoy when readers catch those subtleties I hide here and there.**

**didi6: I'm glad you liked the chapter, and as far as updating go, I'm happy to let you know they are going to be constant until I'm done with the story, thanks for the review.**

_**The rest of you out there thanks too for reading, and I love your reviews so keep them coming and I'll keep updating.**_

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	5. Chapter 5: Regular Use

**Hi peeps, I would like to remind you all that this fic is almost half way written already so this is why I'm posting so fast.**

**Thanks to those who read this and I fixed something in chapter four go back and see if you catch it.**

**Chapter 5: Regular Use**

_Stage 2: Regular Use_  
_Some people will be able to enter the stage of regular use without developing a dependence or addiction. These people will be able to stop the drug use on their own. The problem with regular use is that the risk for substance abuse greatly increases during this stage. It also increases risky behaviors such as driving under the influence, unexplained violence, and symptoms of depression and anxiety._

_-taken from "the four stages of drug addiction" by Casa Palmera Staff-_

the next morning Aura's coffee was extra strong, she was planning the prom these days it was hard to remember her body was contemporary to the kids who had been doing this for more than thirty years, she needed to be awake, cappuccinos, once Snow and Charming came for a visit, she would tell them how the wonder of cappuccinos and cappuccinos could alter the whole enchanted Forrest universe, she briefly thought in her mind how her former courtiers would have reacted to a double chocolate macciato, like the one she was drinking and suppressed the urge to laugh, tough these days, ordering her peers around and delegating responsabilites to the student council seemed closer and closer to the life she had led back at court when she had been her father's only heir.

Once her fairy godmother had told her strength in her family came in odd moments, she never understood what her (dearly departed) godmother had meant back then, because of course she had been just a little girl sequestered in the sand kingdom with a father that lived forever in fear of maleficent, but now, breathing slowly as she sat patiently hearing Harry Greene (a rather short boy, that had been known as little thumb tuck in another life) rehearse to her for the seventh time his soon-to-be valedictorian speech, Aura wondered if this is what she had meant, if her odd moment of strength had finally come and she hadn't noticed.

Amid prom decoration assignments, fund raiser planning and last minute school projects, Storybrooke Academy seemed to be humming with excitement, all the cheer and festive glory of teenagers that planned to get the hell out of dodge as soon as they could made Aura sad.

Maybe that's why she found herself back at the docs that night.

Killian would not admit he had been waiting for her, no, because that would mean he was interested and again, he reminded himself that he wasn't.

She was still wearing her Storybrooke Academy uniform, he noticed, "knew you couldn't resist coming back for more princess" he said sitting next to her again, Aura just rolled her eyes.

"yeah right, I couldn't sleep"

"burning room again?"

"no, just plain old insomnia" the beauty shrugged "there's no magic here anymore remember?"

"how could I forget?" he looked at the young girl he was tasked with breaking again, and wondered how it was possible that she still possessed the face of the overprotected princess everyone had been so keen on protecting when they first met, and yet was another person altogether, he had known she wasn't as defenseless as Snow, Emma and Mulan made her seem, nobody could be that defenseless, but funny how all it had taken for her true strength to shine was for her to be left alone.

He supposed he could see what Regina saw in hindsight, Aurora's teenage peers all flocked to her presence, like little pups eager for her approval, her smile was enough to negotiate with the usual town folk and she had that sort of steel in the arch of her back that warned one about her character.

To be honest she was never going to be a warrior like Swan, Snow or even her friend Mulan, Hook thought to himself, she had too much fragility in her bones, and her face was just to dainty to be marred, neither was she ever going to be a reformator type, like the wolf waitress, the pink fairy or the crock's misus (to avoid another beating/magical extraction of organs, he had come to know that he should never call the man's misus by her name ever again). This girl was born to be a leader blast it all, no amount of hiding would ever take it away from her.

He would wager that the princess could take a bath in a sewer, dressed in rags, looking like a madwoman, and still make people respect her with just one look of her steely eyes.

Some people where born to fight dragons (like the whole Charming clan), some people where born to help others (like half of the good two shoes in Storybrooke), some where born to just screw the lives of others (like the other half of Storybrooke, himself, the croc and Regina included), some like Aurora, where just born for royalty no matter what world. And her sort of hated her for it.

"you know" he said breaking the silence "The first time I met you, I thought you where remarkably feather brained"

"Really?, because I took pity on you and didn't let my friends leave you in the open for the ogres?" Aurora snorted while Killian nodded "Yes, maybe I was, it's a matter of opinion"

"you friends where right in protecting you so much, you where the three things that make easy prey for men like me"

"young, beautiful and foolish?"

"no, I was going to say, wounded, angry and in-love"

Aurora shook her head and changed the subject "you know something, I think I heard a story about you before, I don't know if it was you though, but since we are being friendly, I have to ask, is it true what my nurse used to say about the fearsome captain of the Jolly Roger?"

"you heard tales about me when you where in the nursery?, I'm flattered princess"

Aurora decided not to indulge in his ego and nodded stiffly recalling a conversation she had once with Belle "yes, you are quite old when one puts it in perspective"

"says the child that slept for twenty eight years in a stiff stone slab"

"touche"

"So what did you nurse tell you that you want me to confirm?, that I was ruthless?, a killer?, I recall a beautiful legend about my ship going around once that it was populated by ghosts and designed to sink thousand on fleets with one cannon"

"She told me a love story actually" the princess looked down blushing, Killian didn't look at her but his silence gave her courage to go on "She used to tell me a story, about a fearsome ship captain and his beautiful bride, said he had saved her from a terrible fate and made her his sea queen, or was it captain queen?, I don't remember, one day an evil sorcerer found out about their happiness and couldn't stand them being together, so he challenged the captain to a magical duel, which the captain won yet the evil magician to take revenge, decided to take the life of his beautiful bride, and the grieving and handsome, yes I do recall nurse saying the captain was handsome, the grieving handsome captain swore on his beloved dying body he would avenge her if it took him a lifetime"

her tale made him smile, if he had to chose a way for someone to remember his Milah, he would rather have Aurora's version over anybody else's "your nurse was either a very kind woman or didn't want to frighten you"

"probably both, so it is true then"

"most of it, yes, of course the ship captain was really a pirate, his bride wasn't nearly as beautiful as you might have been led to believe" He began bitterly deciding it was better to tell her the truth "he didn't rescue her from a terrible fate, that was another lie, the evil sorcerer actually had valid reasons to want to kill both the pirate and his bride back then and of course we both know the handsome captain was left more bloodthirsty than in grief"

"so that is the story then?, he killed her, so you wanted to kill him" Aurora nodded "I can see the logic, while I don't approve it, I can see it, I wanted to kill someone too when I thought Phillip was gone" She wondered why the threat of that woman's ghost made her feel a tiny sting of jealousy "she must have been a very good woman"

"she wasn't, dear princess" Killian admitted, Milah had been many things, passionate, adventurous, good in bed, but "good woman" was not one of them "but I loved her all the same"

"did revenge taste as sweet as you imagined it would when you finally had it?" well wasn't she a little curious thing? Killian thought.

"It did, that night, for one moment, I felt the crocodile's heart stop beating with my own hands, and it was the greatest feeling in the world, nothing can compare love" he wiggled his eyebrows it had, felt great, the world in his hands his thirst for Rumpelstiltskin's blood appeased "then of course his missus came to revive him, but that doesn't take away the fact I did kill him and enjoyed every minute of it"

"while it lasted maybe" she had heard the story too, Rumpelstiltskin had been dead for a full half an hour before Belle had done a true-love/dark-magic-ritual/fairy-dust-infused-ele ctricity-packed revival kiss to bring him back, but she could understand how Hook felt.

"now enough about me, what about you beautiful?, how does it feel to be de-princified?" he didn't want to keep talking about himself she would learn too much and women with knowledge where dangerous things.

"De-princified?" Aurora gave him a puzzled frown but then got his meaning "it feels like freedom actually, do you know how hard it is to be a princess?, no of course you don't" she suddenly got up feeling the need to explain herself with more gestures "at court there where a lot of things I could not do, I even had a book detailing them" Hook chuckled "I did, Chapter one is entirely dedicated to how to behave in supper"

"let me guess no burping before the king?" Killian raised an eyebrow, Aurora harrumphed and crossed her arms "no, really tell me, what exactly is so hard about having everything, lacking nothing, ordering people around and dining with golden silverware?"

Aurora gave him a haughty look and began to list "No nagging or bragging" she recited Killian rolled his eyes " sweating, fretting and slipping or tripping is also not allowed, what would my subjects feel if they saw me sweat or trip or stutter?, good heavens, it would cause disaster"she mocked her father 's words "slurping, burping, skipping, especially in castle halls, not allowed, not allowed to show emotions, not allowed to slouch one's back, or jump or speak too loud or stump" She ticked her fingers off " always be polite even when you want to strangle someone, always smile even when you had a awful day, always keep your composure with people you dislike, as I often do when I am with you" she leveled a look at him "Every subject deserves a gentle word, even when they despise you for not being male, a princess never talks to servants lest of all play with them when she is lonely, she shall aways be smart, and kind, letting yourself be angry at something, was considered practically behaving like a common maid" Aurora was really enjoying seeing him squirm "no mocking, shouting, screaming, crying, frowning, sniffing, leering or show any sort of negative emotion, a princess is not a commoner, and as such she is expected to behave according to protocol" smiling satisfied Sleeping Beauty sat back down letting his mind catch up for a minute

"forgive me princess, I shall never call you anal retainative ever again" Killian smirked, he could see where her endless pride came from now, eighteen years prisoner of a gilded cage, who would have thought? "it seems to me I was wrong"

"you are forgiven...pirate" Aurora nodded smiling, both where silent then and let their gaze roam the dark star reflected sea before them.

"you aren't at all like everybody assumes you are" Hook mused out loud surprised his eyes following the water just as hers had done.

"Aren't we all?" She sighed

"No" he shrugged, "Most people in this new world take pleasure in showing their true selves"

"Really, because last time I took a moment to notice, hiding who they really are is all mankind is ever good at" She deflected using a sage proberb, but Killian saw trough her ruse and smirked.

"if you don't mind me asking your highness, why come here to Storybrooke" Aurora opened her mouth to reply but he cut her off "I know, you told me last night, you took the high road, blah blah blah, but why here?, of all the worlds you had to chose from?, why the one without magic?"

it had been such a long time since someone had asked her such a direct question, Aurora closed her eyes and got up, going to the railing separating the docs from the sea, and thought about her answer "I wanted to start over" she admitted at last.

"why?" he snorted not seeing the connection in his eyes, before leaving the enchanted Forrest Aurora had been set for life, "not that I care but a mystery is a mystery, and as a pirate I like those"

"you said it before, most people in this world, don't hide their true selves" she could feel him get up from the bench too and come closer, but she refused to look at him when revealing something she hadn't thought of telling anybody "I wanted to find who my true self is, I wanted to know, who I am, without the tiara, without Phillip, without the endless nightmares of the sleeping curse" she wouldn't tell him about Red and Victor, that was personal but she would, at least admit the truth "I wanted to know what it would feel like to be just Aurora, somewhere nobody expected me to be perfect"

"yet from where I see it lass, that plan hasn't worked out that well so far" he pointed out without any sort of tact, people in Storybrooke still knew who she was in the enchanted forest, most of them, he knew, still treated her with a special respect, due to all the tags attached to her name.

"not yet, but I'm getting closer to that new start I was looking for" then she looked at him for the first time since she had walked to the railing, not with contempt, or disdain, but with a very open and host expression on her porcelain face "Haven't you ever wished to be just Killian?"

it was also the first time she had said his name without any sort of haughtiness in her voice, just plain honesty, he knew she didn't expect an answer, and he wouldn't tell her, he had, sometime in the past, wished for a new start too, but unlike her, it would never be that easy for him "No, to be honest (he wasn't) I've spent too much time building my fearsome reputation to care about starting from the scratch, I'm a pirate, I'm a woman lover, I'm a captain, that's all I'll ever be, and I'm throughly satisfied" he lied watching her face return to the disdain expression she more often than not gave him

"I shouldn't have expected a common pirate to understand" Aura shook her head in contempt "you where right once again, I am remarkably feather brained" when it comes to you she added in her head.

"it happens from time to time, don't berate yourself for falling for my charm princess"

"Charm?, is that what you call it?, huh, forgive me I must have my definition wrong, isn't lying and deceiving as you do, called cruelty?"

"Call it whatever you want it still works on the ladies" he chuckled, feeling refreshed by her sarcasm, now they where back on even ground, he was thankful "don't fancy yourself the exception"

"I am not one of those girls Hook last time I cared to trust you, you stole one of my organs"

"ahhh the "heart" incident, are you ever going to let go of that grudge against me love?" he said highlighting with his fingers when he said the word heart. Knowing very well what her response would be

"Maybe when you are dead" She replied proving him right "Besides it's not a grudge, a grudge would imply desire for vengeance and I currently have none, this is simply having a good memory"

"Fair enough" He chuckled, this was good, this was fine, her almost insulting him, he could deal with that, when she was being her haughty self, he could ignore more the fact she looked like an average guy's school girl fantasy and concentrate on riling her up "ever thought about calling me Killian princess?" He laughed when the beauty gave him a horrified look "Not that I don't like my profession, but I just thought that since we are being so chummy here, the least you could do would be calling me by my name"

She thought about it for a second straightening her back "I'll call you Killian, the day you stop calling me princess" she offered

Killian gave her a once-over, from her sparkly hair barrette, to her designer black shoes running his eyes down her skirt and legging clad legs, the girl had no idea what she was asking right?, he was pirate, he didn't call people by their names, that would be too personal, and the last thing he needed was to stop thinking of her as a princess, "no dice love, I'm going to bed now, one of these days you must tell me when the heck you find time to sleep" He announced out of nowhere deciding it was about time he got some modicum of sleep regardless of everything "tough it's been a while since I've been friends with a woman, maybe you are right in this whole new beginning business" he mused out loud

Aurora shook her head "you and I are not friends"

"seems to me we are, but don't worry love, secret's safe with me" he winked walking away, lest he stare into her eyes for longer and start having thoughts he hasn't had since Milah.

:-_

**Thanks to Marene my only review on last chapter (Your review was so worth it)  
**

**Marene: I'm trying to stay true to Aurora's voice too, I'm glad you got it from the start, she's a very unique character to sketch because one gets the feeling that there's more to her than being a spoiled princess, and yes I agree with you on the fact her mind is more rational than the rest, that what I like about Aurora, she often thinks more with her pride than with her brain or her heart, she's the type of girl I imagine Regina would have been had she been raised properly as a princess, by Cora and Henry Sr, (I don't know why I keep comparing them in my head) or how Snow White would have turned out, had Queen Eva not intervened in time, Aurora's hear is in the right place, but I think her main flaw is her upbringing, she was taught to behave in a certain way, say certain things and treat people a certain way, talk about culture shock, I think that's why she's not outright rejecting Hook's olive branch.**

**the rest of you, already know what the next stage of addiction is, but just in case you don't, stage 3 is known as "risky use/abuse" and that's the perfect title for next chapter.**

**there's the button, please review, and make me happy.**

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	6. Chapter 6: Risky use

**One review huh?, well a good review is a good review... wish there where more tough...**

**-Chapter 6: Risky use/Abuse**

_Stage 3: Risky Use/Abuse_  
_The line between regular use and risky use/abuse is a very thin one, but is usually defined as continued use of drugs in spite of severe social and legal consequences. What might have begun as a temporary form of escape can quickly lead to more serious problems. This is the stage where the warning signs of addiction will begin to appear: craving, preoccupation with the drug, and symptoms of depression, irritability and fatigue if the drug is not used._

_- taken from "the four stages of drug addiction"by Casa Palmera Staff-_

She came back the next night and they talked again, and the night after that, and by the next night Aurora could not deny it any longer, Hook and her where friends...sort of.

If by friends it meant they talked and smirked and tried to get the other's mask to crack, then didn't see each other during the whole day until it was past midnight again and Aurora couldn't freaking sleep.

It became like a cycle, a vicious, addictive cycle, that two weeks later neither was close to breaking.

Not that it wasn't just as bad for Killian, who stopped lying to himself by the third night about why he was always waiting for the girl to come back to the docs each night, Aurora aka princess, was like a itch he couldn't help but scratch until it bled, at first he had been interested in her only because he wanted to see how the lass was fairing now that she had her heart back, then it became about Regina's stupid errand, now, now it was simply because the blasted princess was interesting herself.

Which was why he was here, outside her house at four am (after successfully breaking into Regina's files to get her address) hook-less, watching the one yellow light in her window because for the first time in almost eight days, she hadn't come and he wanted to know why.

Yes it was a bit stalkerish to be outside Aurora's massive house at four am, but in his defense, he had yet to break in, that was one step in the right direction right?, taking out his cellphone he dialed her number.

Aura on the other hand had been trying, really trying to stay indoors, she had promised herself she was cutting the habit, why did Mulan have to send that letter now?, things had seemed to be going so well, but then uncle Midas had mentioned she was going out way too often in the night, and Abigail hard brought up the subject of drugs.

She wondered if there was an AA for things like this, being a pirate-holic, she wondered also what Mulan would say if she knew.

The point was she was trying not to see him again, the letter from Mulan had been like a slap of reality to her face, but darn she was missing her late night talks with the pirate, looking at her clock she sighed, four am_, three more hours until dawn Aurora, you can do this_.

Then her phone beeped, (funny Hazel had thought herself witty when she programmed Aura's ringtone as "Bad Romance"), who in the world could be calling her at that time?.

A moment later her question was answered in the form of a husky voice at the other side of the phone line.

"you missed our date beautiful" Hook's voice drawled sitting down in the shadows and looking up at her window, and Aura gave into the urge to scream into her pillow, how was one supposed to leave an addiction if the drug quite literally called you at four am.

"I was sleeping obnoxious pirate, do you know what time it is?"

"no you were not" he replied easy enough "one because you don't sleep at this hour and two because I can see your light on"

"Heavens are you outside my house?" she asked pulling the windows open and looking outside into the street lamp lit darkness

"would you rather I be in it?" she wouldn't see him where he was tough it was nice to watch her try

"No!" Aurora shouted, then she lowered her voice to a whisper "Hook are you crazy?, uncle Midas is right in the backyard if he wakes up he will send the pitbulls after you"

"then let me in" she was still looking about from her window, wearing a white nightgown that was in no way lingerie material, but still made him reconsider his idea of a break-in, if the princess knew the thoughts going on in his head just at contemplating the fact she was alone in a small room wearing that white nightgown, then she herself would send in the big guns.

"hell no!" she hissed "why are you here anyway" this was stalkerish, and Aura narrowed her eyes at the outside

"we had a date rememberer? You didn't show up and I got worried princess"

"it's called breaking the habit, I thought I could do it" then she thought about the other part of his statement "and we did NOT have a date" she hissed "dammit where are you?" she wondered looking around from her window for a sign of his precedence

So he was affecting her as much as she was affecting him...good, the brown haired little temptress deserved it. "too bad I'm not letting you break the habit"

Aura suddenly felt nervous, where was he exactly?, why did his voice sound so...predatory "there's nothing you can do if I want to stay at home every night Hook"

"ohh I have a few ideas of what I could do, all of them involve keeping you right there where you are, a little closer to the bed tough"

DANGER DANGER CONVERSATION APPROACHING RED TERRITORY the sirens wailed in Aura's head (tough she would have wanted to reply in a mildly suggestive tease) she said "Hook stop it, I thought we where friends, friends don't pull this kind of thing at four am unless they are drunk or high, or both" then she gasped "are you high on something? Tell me it's not any of the meth the junkies at my school have been selling"

"No lass, I'm not high, not today anyway" He chuckled almost seeing her outraged expression "all I know is that you are an innocent princess, in a innocent nightgown, all alone and you have f++ng sensibilities I really should spare, but I'm a pirate..see the problem here?" maybe he was drunk, Killian thought to himself, how many shots of rum had he drank before leaving his yacht?.

Aura swallowed and closed her window shivering, in excitement not in fear but he didn't need to know that "Hook, stop it, I don't like it when you swear" she said using her royal voice, then after a while of not hearing anything she cracked the shutters open a tiny inch "you still there?"

"yeah still here love, so you going to tell me what's really got your panties in a twist?"

"I already told you I'm getting over the habit"

"Bunch of bull that is darling"

"...And I was worried about this thing you know uncle told me about this essay I could begin to write for Harvard..."

"wrong answer love, but nice try, next"

"...Regina wants me to start working this summer as her assistant in city hall but.." Aurora kept rambling about the million things she had to do the blueprints the lace, the prom, college admissions, even paying the gardner.

"are you done yet princess? Or did you run out of excuses?"

Finally Aura sighed and leaned out the window giving up, wondering where in the darkness of her house's lawn he was hiding, very conscious of the effort she hoisted herself on the windowsill, and got comfortable "it's a long story, Mulan sent me a letter" she confessed

Hook could see her clearly, her white nightgown now fully visible thanks to the fact she was practically sitting in the windowsill, her knees bent slightly upward and tough he couldn't claim to have eagle vision, he could still see the flesh of her bare toes, he wondered what it would feel like to slide that pretty nightgown just an inch or two down her shoulders, would her skin be as soft as it looked?, what would it feel to let himself touch her, silk under sandpaper, he supposed, his hand caressing hers.

Shaking himself out of the thought he told himself to focus, he was here for something, "care to elaborate love?, I'm getting cold and the waiting isn't very nice, what did the warrior girl say in her letter that made you miss our date?" he grinned at the fact he had flustered her yet again

"nothing and yet" Aurora sighed "She misses me, just like Phillip does, I took myself out of their lives to let them be happy but they miss me as much as I miss them"

Hook panicked, so this is why Regina had been so worried, she was right in the beginning, all it would take for Aurora to go back home would be a simple push such as this, if the warrior girl convinced the princess to go back to the enchanted forest, his hopes to find the Jolly Roger would be dashed "and I take it you will just drop everything you have here because of that? You don't seem like the type love"

"of course not, you didn't let me finish, Mulan wants me to be her maid of honor, apparently Phillip wants to have a big wedding" Aurora slumped her shoulders holding her cellphone hard "she hates the thought of course, Mulan wasn't born into pomp and wealth, like Phillip and I, she doesn't understand why the need of such a waste of kingdom resources for a wedding"

"nor do I to be sure" Hook snorted the warrior girl would have been someone he would have liked had they been in the same side, then it dawned on him "she wants you to convince prince dandy not to go trough with the pompous affair doesn't she lass?" he mocked

Aurora nodded from her place in the window, her nightgown hiking up a bit with the chilly wind and Hook looked down, devils he had an anti-virgin policy, what was happening to him? "And I wish I could, but Phillip is so determined when he wants to be, I can just predict how it would go" her voice still warped lovingly at the mention of the prince's name, and Hook felt a small measure of his temper flare. "so there's that, happy, now you know what's got me worried"

Hook chuckled "tricky business isn't it, too bad they are not getting married here love, I would have a mighty ol time crashing that party" he made the suggestion seemed so casual but in reality it had been anything but.

Aurora saw right trough his trick, but didn't comment on it as he had given her the answer she needed "that's it pirate, Hook, I hate to say this but it's a brilliant thought" one had to give the devil it's due.

"I as a rule am always brilliant princess, or is it now you have come to notice?"

"shut up, there is a way this could work, all I must do is let Snow know I wish them to be wed here and she will make arrangements, Mulan will have a small wedding and I won't be separated from my duties in Storybrooke Academy, I must write to Mulan right away" she jumped from the window in excitement

"so there will be a party to crash with my crew after all, your highness didn't need have bothered" Hook walked out from the shadows and decided to let her see him, she had called him brilliant after all.

Aurora looked down at his face and raised her head haughtily "you wouldn't be able to get in, it will be by invitation only"

"I like to disguise myself as a noble once in a while your highness, the question here is, would you ever recognize me?" Hook challenged letting one of his tactics slip and watched her frown

"I would recognize you anywhere pirate, don't doubt that"

"let's make it a bet then darling, if you win I'll tell you a truth, anything you want to know, one question and I'll answer it without lies" he was killing two birds in one shot, getting the princess not to leave Storybrooke and assuring himself he would get what he wanted out of her "and in that wedding, if you don't recognize me dressed as a noble, then I'll be the one that gets to have that one truth"

"that's a very bad bet, are you so certain you would win?"

"very lass, don't underestimate the master"

"very well then, you have a bet" Aurora agreed "but when I win, and I will win, I'll make you tell me some deep dark secret of yours, just wait and see"

"so little faith princess, we'll see about that when you lose" all this time and this was the closest thing to the enchanted forest wear he had seen on her, this girl wasn't the type to wear flannel pajamas, he wondered if she too felt the comforting familiarity that came with wearing something from their native land "you look very fetching in that white slip you know" He said knowing fully well he would fluster her greatly

"Hook!" Aurora cried in outrage closing her window in anger, _let him see her trough the walls now._

"why did you close the window love?, afraid of the big bad pirate?" Hook laughed into the phone, his husky voice lowering to a seductive tint

"No of course not" she replied automatically "but you need to go uncle Midas has an alarm system and I can hear him getting up to check on the pitbulls"

"aye, those annoying barking beasts, don't know how you stand them"

"because it's necessary, he might release them soon Hook, get out of here"

"fine I'll go, but you owe me one princess" he chuckled into her phone, making her stomach go into knots

"are you gone already?" she could hear there where different sounds around him.

"aye, down the street, away from your house love, don't worry about me" His roughish tone then took on a harder edge "by the way Aurora, if you make me stoop this low next time, I don't care how many excuses you have I won't stop at the locked door" He warned her "just something for you to think about love"

And yes that had kept her awake until school, haunted her dreams when she managed to get some sleep in free period, and made Hazel and Marina tease her mercilessly at lunch.

Aura thought about Killian more than she should, what exactly where they?, she thought their relationship had a name, friends, that was something, but friends didn't do things like what he had done that morning, in hindsight neither did boyfriends.

Was he getting as addicted to her as she was to him?...she had to admit it wasn't "impossible"...And also utterly not right..he was still a pirate. Eighteen years of royal breeding couldn't vanish in a day...

If only she could talk to Snow, Snow White was the closest thing to a maternal figure she knew, and she would know what to do in her position, but Snow was back in the Enchanted forest taking a tour around the kingdoms with her husband, what was happening to her?, why was her mind constantly coming back to Hook without even meaning to?, did she need therapy? Was there therapy for thinking too much about a person, no, not person, Man...Ughhh why did he have to be so infuriating!

Killian on the other hand, spent the rest of the morning sleeping in his yacht's cabin, surprisingly smug, the nightmares that plagued him daily for once being kept at bay by the memory of a outraged princess in white cotton nightgown.

**AN: thanks for the support and everything, I'm writng right now and I confess I think this fic won't be more than ten chapters long.**

**Superdeedee311: Thanks for the support, you review was totally worth everything**

**now if you liked this chapter, you know what to do.**

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	7. Chapter 7: Substance dependence

**No reviews? well I'm still hopefull.**

Chapter 7: Substance dependance

_**Substance dependence** When an individual persists in use of alcohol or other drugs despite problems related to use of the substance, substance dependence may be diagnosed. Compulsive and repetitive use may result in tolerance to the effect of the drug and withdrawal symptoms when use is reduced or stopped. These, along with Substance Abuse are considered Substance Use Disorders_

_-taken from "Substance dependance" Wikipedia-_

Still the next night, regardless of how tiring her day had been or the fact her uncle Midas (who had gotten wind of her nightly escapades and had chosen to stay at the big house with her for a couple of days) was sleeping downstairs, she had still kept her promise (it was a promise right?).

Killian meanwhile had spent the day with Regina, who was joyfully enjoying his apparent discomfort at having his "errand" with Aurora mentioned repeatedly, of course Regina knew more details about what he'd been doing than he wanted her to, she wouldn't be herself if she didn't, but spending time with her was better than the alternative (walking around town looking morose or sitting in his yacht drinking with some of his old crew) he didn't have to like it but the queen sometime during the past craziness had turned out to be a good sort-of-on-and-off friend/drinking buddy. But he wasn't going to tell the princess about Regina's plans...not yet at least.

"this is coercion...worse..this is blackmail" was the first thing Aurora had said when she approached his still form in the docs, he was like always, sitting on the usual bench, just waiting for her.

"Heard Regina ratted out to your dear uncle Midas, how did the old goon take the sneaking out by the way?" she was dressed in a sensible black outfit, he supposed it was her pitiful attempt at being discreet.. it didn't work, the princess had a way of standing out like a candle even against the dark of a moonless night.

"he doesn't know I snuck out you idiot" she hissed "and I only came back because you threatened to break into my house, as I said, this is blackmail"

"keep telling yourself that if it helps you sleep at night" he grinned roguishly and again Aurora wondered how it would be like if he really where another person, just a normal guy, and she a normal girl, of course even in the modern world there was nothing normal about a nightmare ridden girl and a womanizing cad meeting hours after midnight, even in this world, the very scenario brought dirty connotations to her mind, imagine what would happen had it been the enchanted forest. "ohh I forgot, you can't sleep much can you"

she shook her head deciding to let his rudeness slide "So what is the topic today pirate?" She wondered settling next to him nonchant and she was glad he was now used to her presence "we have already talked about my childhood (endless protocol lessons and not nearly enough time to have fun), your childhood (endless beatings and mischief making), my parents (dead), your parents (dead too), my love life, your love life, my enemies (maleficient) and yours (the crocodile)"

"we do talk quite a lot don't we lass, and to think that you are a woman" for all these little talks he had been having with her, he had revealed as much of himself to her as she had of herself, funny he never thought the day would come when he would actually like a beautiful woman for something other than her beauty. "you are the one with all the questions, go ahead and ask something"

"I don't want to know anything else than what I do already if that's good with you" She had come to the startling realization that she did mean it, of Hook she knew surprisingly enough, and while she was sure he would not sugarcoat any of his dark deeds if she asked about them just to see her squirm, she thought herself clever enough to have learned how to read him.

"wise dessition princess, considering the only things left to ask me about are about my life of piracy and my way with women"

Aura chuckled "I suppose you are right" cocking her head to the side she smiled "but then again you have had a long life, whereas I, have only led a short one, if I wanted I could ask enough questions about your adventures to last a lifetime"

"but you don't wish to know about my adventures" Killian saw a flicker of amusement pass trough the girl's face "that's a first, normally it's all women like to gush about when they meet me"

"I was raised to love my home and consider myself the sedentary sort" She told him with a srug because it was true " I am a homey girl, I've never had much of a wish to travel because I get attached to people around me, I know them enough, love them enough then of course I don't wish to leave them" Aurora admitted back in her kingdom it had been her extraordinary love for her people that had prompted her to sacrifice everything for them "I find that people that have many adventures more often than not find themselves in places far away from the people they love"

"and I find that this is exactly the reason why I was always at the sea, I never liked to get attached to a single place, the world was too large to be left unseen and the rewards to big to be left unexplored" he explained to Aurora "staying in one place was for common folk, my father was a sailor, I was raised to beleive in the freedom of the sea"

"then I suppose you would never understand me" she was seeing in him something, something apart from the mask he let everybody see, when he sat with her, he seemed to be honest, and Aurora found herself liking him for it.

"I don't see how, why give up the freedom of the sea?, when one can travel and see everything there is to see, why limit oneself to one single place"

"Because there's more to it than you realize" Aurora replied, wondering again how being so so different, they found common ground, he thought freedom meant running, and she thought freedom meant staying. Subconsciously she edged a little closer to him and their shoulders brushed slightly, but neither said anything.

"I'll prove it to you, See that yacht over there, it's called the Phoenix" Hook pointed to a black vessel by the Pier, he had maneuvered it just right, so that she could see it's imposing structure someday, seeing as Aurora wasn't impressed by the normal things he used to impress women, like his adventures or his charm, then he thought he would give the ship thing a try. (wait a minute since when did he want to impress her royal haughtiness?)

"I think the name suits the bearer" was all she commented, and he could sense she was tired, maybe if he hadn't been so insistent she spend the nights with him he would be getting more rest, but then again he was a pirate, he usually didn't care for the welfare of others except his crew.

"Come" He ordered getting up, this time not giving her a chance to refuse "I'm going to show you what it is like to be on deck"

"No!" he hadn't even asked what a jerk, she adjusted her scarf and glared "I told you I hate the sea"

"and I would guess that living all your life in the desert you have never actually set foot on a ship" Killian sighed at the idea that just occurred to him "how do you know you hate it when you have never tried it?" he chuckled "come on princess the sea isn't as bad as it looks, you were willing to climb a beanstalk"

"this is different" she crossed her arms over her chest glaring "what if I trip, or get seasick, or slip and end up drowning?"

"you'll be with me lass what's the worse that could happen?" Aurora raised a perfect beautiful eyebrow "fine, then carry on if you will, but I never expected to see the day the princess of the sands cowered in fear" then to punctuate his statement he tuned his back on her and added under his breath perfectly aware she could hear him "chicken", it was an old trick designed to goad the best of prides even the crocodile had fallen for it, so naturally Aurora was no exception.

"You sir are infuriating, I am not, or will ever be a coward"

"prove it princess, come for a ride in the Phoenix with me" he sniggered at the way she blanched "unless of course you would rather admit you are scared"

"Never" She hissed, "Fine, I'll come but only to prove to you I am better than that"

this was how they had found themselves aboard the Phoenix, alone at one am on a very chilly night, Aurora had climbed into the yacht with reluctance but still holding her head high, to show him she wasn't a chicken as he claimed, he had done it because...well he didn't know exactly what possessed him to goad the princess into riding his new "ship", but he was a man of the sea, the very idea of someone not knowing how it felt to navigate even a rowboat was inconceivable, the fact she was one of those rare people that hadn't sailed or even tasted the sea in their whole lives made him sort of angry.

It was like loving a certain flavor of ice cream and discovering the rest of the world doesn't care for the taste, nahh loving the sea was like loving a woman, but he wouldn't think of woman analogies with her there so close to him..it made things difficult and he was still bloody male.

Aurora on the other hand was trying to find even ground, so to speak, but the "thing" kept rocking back and forth, this was why she hated the sea, it was never still, one sway of a wave and poof she could be on her bum as fast as lightning, sand dunes at least had the decency of keeping still when one walked on them, "see I'm sailing, but I still don't like it" return me to shore please, I hate not to know have a still ground under my feet, was what she wanted to say.

She was holding the railing tightly and Killian could see she was more nervous than she wanted to let on, her cheeks normally a pale pink where now fully apple red, the wind was whipping on her hair but she made no move to settle the strands bothering her face, he had of course seen people that didn't care for the sea but seeing the girl like that, both frightened, freezing and tired, but trying her hardest not to show weakness just because he had goaded her into it suddenly made him feel like a cad, and that my friends was something that captain Hook didn't feel often.

Putting the yacht in auto-pilot he decided she probably had enough of his stupidness, and remembering something a old sea wench had told him about settling nervous women he sighed and took off his coat "Princess, come here" he said standing right in the middle of the ship's deck.

Aura looked at her own feet, that would probably either slip, slide or trip with the ship's movement and shook her head "I am quite happy where I am, thank you Hook" darn him for convincing her to do this, she thought to herself, what was with his smirk that could get even the hardest of souls to follow him to hell?. She swallowed wishing she could put her hands around her arms and rub them for warmth but there was no way she could loose hold of the railing, shivering she squared her shoulders back and gave Hook a tight smile "See I am perfectly fine"

She was stubborn, but he admired that, "I know that princess, I just want you to see something" when he saw her shake her head again he got irritated "Aurora, come here" he startled them both by saying her name, he didn't know why it mattered if he called her by her name or not, but normally he tried not to because it kept him distanced from people, he vowed not to make the same mistake again, but he was happy it had made his companion shocked enough to do what he said. "now sit here" he pointed to the floor Aurora snapped out of it and looked at the shiny white surface.

"there, in the floor?"

"yes there!" He nodded "have a little faith in me a bit will you"

with a sigh Aurora did as she was told, not because he looked very handsome in his dark blue shirt and trousers, not because she felt he sounded like he cared, but because she wanted to sit down anyway (liar). "now what? Hook what are you doing?" she asked when he lowered himself to sit right next to her, "carelessly" dropping the coat he had under his arm around her shoulder.

"it's a trick someone taught me a long time ago, now close your eyes" Aurora narrowed her eyes in suspicion, looking like a tiny lion cub that thought herself capable of taking on the leader of the pack "I'm not going to try anything all right" he said holding his hands up, "I promise, just trust me, close your eyes"

Aurora did as she was told with reluctance wondering where her can of mace was just in case, "what is the purpose of this?" she asked already feeling more frightened, the air smelt of salt, and wood cleaner, she could eel Hook's warmth just right next to her, making her heart beat a little faster, then she felt a n arm come around her shoulder and her eyes snapped open "Hook!"

"Close your eyes princess, I said I wasn't going to try anything right?" he remarked, because while he was a cad, and a womanizer, and a all around bastard, Hook liked to think himself above debauching innocents, and lets admit it, the girl in his arms was as innocent as they got, regardless of the fact she had a backbone of steel. It didn't mean he couldn't enjoy it tough, after all, she was warm, despite the cold weather, and smelled like sunflowers in bloom, something he reveled in.

Aurora wanted to tell him that what he was doing looked pretty close to "trying something", but deciding she was already in to her neck, and had brought this upon herself, closed her eyes again and tried to pretend she wasn't enjoying his arm around her.

"now I want you to feel the movement of the ship, just take a minute to think about how it feels, not the waves not the water, not the cold air, just the ship, can you do that?" Aurora nodded, and Killian watch her closed eyes scrunch in concentration.

Aurora, tried, she tried to feel what he was telling her to, just the ship, concentrating for a few minutes, she began breathing in and out, in and out, she could hear the waves in the distance, the floor beneath her kept moving, back and forth, up and down, unnerving her every time, but a few minutes with her eyes closed like that, she began to get used to the feeling until finally she understood what he had meant, "It feels like the movement mothers use to calm their babies" she whispered amazed "it feels like...a rocking chair"

He saw her open her eyes and give him a smile "see that sailing is not so bad lass?" he watched her nod and close her eyes again, trying to catch the movement of thee sea with her senses once more.

"thank you Killian" Aurora whispered with a smile still sitting next to him, unconsciously she laid her head on his shoulder, and in her calm state of peace she wondered if they made a romantic picture, sitting in a yacht looking very much like a couple.

He wondered about that too, but since neither of them made a move to break the comfy position they where in, the other chose to ignore the implications of those things.

Sometime during the night, Aurora fell asleep, with her head on his shoulder.

And tough he was tense enough as it was, sometime during the night Killian relaxed long enough to fall asleep too.

The night had been cool and both had been tired.

It wasn't until the glare of the sun rising over the coast of Maine woke him up to find Aurora still very much asleep cuddled up at his side that he realized he hadn't had any dreams at all, and looking into the princess's sleeping face, he smiled.

She looked calm, unlike the other times in the enchanted forest he had seen her sleep, with an almost smile in her face, shielding it subconsciously against the dawn, warm as ever he considered the implications of what they where doing.

Because he couldn't deny it anymore, he might have been able to do it before this, but now he had to actively admit to himself he liked her, perhaps like was too much of a tame word, he was starting to fall for her dammit, the princess with her steely gray eyes holding unguarded secrets, he needed a woman fast, maybe Regina would be up for a little play sometime that night, but no, even as he thought about it, with the sun getting higher and higher over the sea there was no denying that he was the one that didn't feel up for it, not when the blasted little lady currently still snuggled up at his side continued to haunt his thoughts.

He would have been relieved had the pirate known he wasn't the only one startled by the sudden revelation because once Aura opened her eyes a moment later to find his staring right into them, she too realized she liked him a lot more than she should... maybe even...was she falling in love with a pirate?.

Hook felt her lift up her head, and look adorably disoriented while she moved away, shaking his thoughts about her warmth from his head he tried to pretend nothing was amiss and smirked "Good morning princess, just in time to see you namesake I see" he pointed to the far sea and immediately regretted it, here he was trying to think why it was not a good idea to like her, when the universe conspired against him with the perfect...

"Sunrise?" She mumbled watching the sun was lifting itself from the depths of the sea coloring the sky with a multitude of beautiful hues in awe, her eyes gazed at the splendor of it, and Hook felt her lean into his side once again, he knew she hadn't noticed else she would have moved away, but he reveled in the knowledge that her body responded automatically to his...interesting.

"that's what sailors know as Aurora" he whispered husky into her ear, watching her eyes widen, and her pretty lips purse and gulp. Finally realizing the intimate position she was in, practically leaning all over him and blushed.

The phoenix, while in auto pilot had sailed quite a distance away from the shore, and all around everything she could see was water, illuminated by the sun sparkling like the jewels of her favorite diadem, Hook, looked at her and got up, apparently he hadn't realized the beauty of what she was seeing, Aurora wondered if he too felt the peaceful feeling that had reigned when they where sleeping next to each other, if he felt the need to touch, the itch in his fingers, like she had, before he got up. Breaking the moment.

"you where right, it's beautiful" she conceded, getting up slowly from her spot and stretching her legs, "is this what you wake up to see every morning?" she wondered in awe at the blue glittering sea, in the distance she could hear the waves, that before had terrified her, now it sounded like a lulling sound. Had it always been this wonderful.

"Aye, I told you the sea wasn't that bad" he was talking to her from the top part of the yacht where the steering wheel was, and was looking at her with an odd expression on her face.

She walked to the railing, this time with less fear than the previous night and watched the sun warm up all she could see, with a sigh she nodded "I'll admit it's better than I expected"

he laughed glad that she was still being haughty, it was part of who she was after all, but her body language betrayed her excitement, her brown hair whipping in the wind as she tried to subdue it, "they all say the same thing, now princess didn't you want to say something?, you know along the lines of Hook devilish handsome captain, you where right?"

Aurora laughed "Fine, you where right?" she conceded again, then felt her stomach grumble loudly, very loudly, and that was all it took for reality to come crashing back down "Heavens, I snuck out last night!" she panicked with wide eyes "I snuck out and I'm not back yet, uncle Midas, oh lord this is bad"

it was Hook's turn to laugh "Hate to break it to you princess but that's the least of your problems" he grinned leaving the steering wheel and deftly reaching her in a minute "after all, for all intent and purposes you spent the night in my company!" he whispered leaning over to let his words reach her ear.

**Okay now, comment and review, I refuse to have a fanfic with more chapters than it has reviews no matter now much I love you all...**


	8. Chapter 8: Full time addiction

**so thanks for the reviews, this chap is especially written for those who were nice enough to leave me one..**

**chapter 8: Full time Addiction**

_Stage 4: Drug Addiction and Dependency_  
_ Physical dependence on a drug is often intertwined with addiction. Characteristics of dependence and drug addiction include withdrawal symptoms and compulsive use of the drug despite severe negative consequences to his or her relationships, physical and mental health, personal finances, job security and criminal record._

_-Taken from "the four stages of drug addiction" by Casa Palmera Staff-_

Aurora took a deep breath, and another, and yet another.

Why was Killian always right?, here she was for one single moment enjoying the morning, after having the best sleep she ever had in years, even if it was only three hours, and he had to come and ruin it with reality, the reality where she had responsibilities..and things to do.

She had to admit his side of life looked appealing, who wouldn't be attracted by the life Killian Jones led, forever in the sea so vast, not having to watch after nobody but himself, and possibly his crew, doing what he wanted and sailing away leaving strange locations to see even more world mysteries.

Yes it was attractive, but not something that appealed to her.

Her reality while so different from his, was a reality she loved, if only she could make him see what it was she loved so much about being in one place.

Then she had an idea, it was crazy, and looking at Hook in the steering wheel of the yacht, he probably would say no, but he had shared this part of him with her, and she wanted, no needed, to share a part of her with him. So at last she spoke, summoning the nonchalance she didn't feel.

"last night was a Friday night, as far as uncle Midas is concerned I can do what I wish as long as it isn't a school night" she said pretending to be confident "And I'm a model citizen, I think my reputation can take a little gossip"

"exhibiting the pirate spirit darling, that's a first" he was nervous, thinking that maybe he had miscalculated, and Aurora did want to be with him alone in his ship after all, devil take him, one thing was for him to like her but another thing was for her to like him back... so far her resistance to his charm and her utter disdain for him had been what was keeping him in check.

Hook resisted the need to look for liquor and down a a bottle in one sitting, _he didn't debauch virgins, he didn't debauch virgins, he didn't debauch virgins,_ he reminded himself over and over, "I am trying not to judge you Hook, you showed me the sea, and tough I don't love it, I still think it's beautiful, take this small show of dis-inhibition as a offering of gratitude"

if this was how she showed her gratitude he wondered how she would react if he showed her, some more "beautiful" things he knew, but no, that thought would have to wait "I don't need you gratitude princess, don't waste it on me"

"Nevertheless, I'm still grateful" Aurora shrugged her shoulders and turned away looking at the fast approaching shore, "I now understand why you love the sea so much" she said against the whipping wind "your kind of freedom is very attractive"

"But I'm guessing it still doesn't appeal to you am I right princess?" Hook rolled his eyes, funny how in daylight, he could see her emotions play right across her face, something he didn't get much at night. "you would rather have the desert, or in this case, dry land" the pirate said stopping the boat right at the side of the pier.

"I told you, you would never understand why I love land so much" replied the princess deciding it was now or never, she took a deep breath and tried to channel her inner Mulan, or Red, or inner Killian "Now come on, I believe I owe you a free breakfast" she said motioning with her head downtown's direction once her feet where firmly set on the solid wooden planks of the pier

Killian was puzzled at her sudden invitation, the sunrise must have mellowed her royal highness quite a bit, he expected her to walk away and not look back, instead she was intentionally risking his company on broad daylight "I didn't realize you considered a ride in the Phoenix that cheap" Hook said jumping off board with agility and landing next to her "next time I'll make sure you know the million dollar fee"

"You can refuse if you want it's not like I am overly eager, but..." the princess trailed off not knowing what to say "Ruby makes, the best cappuccinos" was all it occurred to her and feeling like a very dorky person, she started walking away before he could catch her red face.

"I? refuse the company of a beautiful lady such as you?, whoever heard of something more outrageous dear Aurie" Killian mocked with his hand to his heart jogging swiftly to catch up with her

"Aurie? My name is not Aurie you idiot pirate" the princess said in outrage, disliking the sound of the silly nickname

"Ohh but now it is, Last night I thought Aurora was too much of an effort to pronounce so I decided to rechristened you" Hook said matter-of-factly, eying her up and down, black turtleneck and black wrinkled jeans, any other woman in her place would be looking like a mess after sleeping in a wind blown deck, but not this princess, this one managed to look perfectly beautiful in a wild kind of way, and Hook wasn't sure why she hadn't looked more appealing than she did at the moment to him.

"Don't call me that, I have a name and it isn't Aurie it's Aurora..Au Ro Ra," she said enunciating the syllables making gestures with her hands "I don't go around calling you Killie do I?"

Hook chuckled "I actually do have a fondness for that nickname, reminds me when I was just a tadpole taking on my first sail"

"arghhh you are impossible!" the princess grunted stalking away from him "if you ever call me that again..." she threatened feebly

"you'll what?" Killian asked raising an eyebrow knowing she wasn't the kind that made due with physical violence

"forget it, let's go to Grannys for a decent breakfast before I change my mind"

Killian chuckled, bye the mellowed Aurora, welcome back princess haughty "now I have a question" Hook said once again catching up to her as easy as a fox "surely even I can afford to be curious lass, what brought this sudden show of benevolence on?"

"I just thought it would be the right thing to do" Hook raised an eyebrow to let her know he knew she was lying but this time instead of glaring, Aurora surprised him by laughing "And, I had this insane idea you would coöperate, I don't even know why I tried"

Surprised Hook sent her one of his heart-thieving cocky grins "do tell"

"Well, I figured, since you showed me why you love the sea so much, I could show you why I love dry land in return" then she laughed again, looking at him from her peripheral vision "see I told you it was insane Hook"

"it is, there is no way I would understand why anybody would chose this" he motioned to the deserted streets of a still sleeping Storybrooke "over that" he made a motion with his head in the pier's direction.

"I wish you would let me show you" She said smiling sadly, her eyes dropping to the ground and her shoulders sagging in defeat.

he was about to retort, but then he saw her shiver in the morning air and cursed himself, remembering how tired and cold she had looked the previous night, he in his selfishness, had all but forced her on deck, admittedly she had enjoyed it in the end, but still, he owed her a bit of complacency, if not for her, then at least to ease his own conscience "Fine, don't look at me with that face Aurie, let's say for today that I'll humor you, would that make the princess happy?"

"Really Kill?, I swear I didn't think you would agree" then her smile was back with full porcelain force and Killian didn't even bother to point out her new nickname for him lacked finesse, because in that moment, Aurora's dainty little hand had reached out and wrapped itself around his,gently tugging him in the direction of Granny's dinner.

Her hand spent the rest of the day wrapped around his, and he didn't complain, not when it gave him an excuse to glare at any single male that stepped in a five foot radius of her person, she spent her Saturday tugging him along places he had already seen in Storybrooke, like an exited child showing off a room full of toys, well as exited as a girl raised to be a royal could get, but in her case, Aurora had the saving grace of matching her tour with insightful comments.

People in town had stared, some even had outright approached the princess and asked (some politely others rudely) why she was spending her time with common riffraff like him, but Aurora had been so happy by the fact she had Killian's attention that she hadn't for once, cared much about tarnishing her perfect princess image, she had been kind to all who approached her, and smiled while she talked even when Killian could see they made her very uncomfortable.

"He's my friend" was all she had said, like it explained the theory of universal magic, and yet like a spell, that was all it had taken for people to leave him alone. Like if her word alone was credential enough.

Walking by Aurora's side in Storybrooke was something altogether new for Killian, certainly nothing he had ever experienced before in his life as a pirate, he was normally used to people either staring in awe at him, running away in fear, or walking away discreetly mumbling under their breath, such was the privilege of a life and reputation carved with blood in history books and whispered stories.

But this was different, with Aurora, everybody that looked in their direction seemed to smile politely, townsfolk walked up to the pair and striked up conversations with her out of the blue like if it where the most natural thing in the world to have their unofficial princess in the company of a murderous womanizing cad, the people didn't even ignore him, he could see that each person that approached Aurora made a conscious effort to include a nice word about him, or at least a polite greeting.

In the street people waved or saluted at Aurora, the men usually with some sort of respectful distance and the women usually with enthusiasm, the princess dragged him to the farmers market first, after stopping by at her house for a decent shower and a change of clothes (a nicety she had extended to him too once she was done, which surprised him considering he was being invited in to the very house he had treated to break into the night before), at it surprised him to know she was actually one of those royals that seemed to always have something to do. She even dragged him to a flower shop, on a Saturday ("Mulan's wedding" she had told him with her usual pride), then there was the post office, town's hall, dentist, pharmacy, hospital, supermarket, clothes boutique, surprisingly her schedule was so well organized even for a weekend that at each place, there was an attendant both expecting her and with a bit of conversation to distract her, from Regina's receptionist at town's hall, to Moe French in the flower shop, Aurora was always treated with civility, and Hook since he was "escorting her around" (according to the gossip mill), was extended the same level of common courtesy.

And it wasn't as if she ignored the strangers (they where strangers to him) that came up to her to nosey-ly inquire about her business, Aurora just had the gift of deftly changing the subject and directing it away from her and in her interlocutor's direction, so in the eyes of whoever she was speaking to it seemed like she just cared an awful lot about him or her, and not that in fact she was just avoiding having to speak of herself. Aurora made people around her feel important (even if to him, they where not), but even then he could see it was all part of a façade, maybe he wouldn't have noticed, had he known her less, but Killian had come to learn trough his nightly conversations with the princess that sometimes, she resented having to be smiling all the time.

Storybrooke seemed to be a different place than he remembered with Aurora at his side, dare he say, it looked like..nicer?, with friendly waving from strangers and even a few uncalled for gifts from ladies that stopped Aurora to talk before going on their merry way, He supposed this was how it felt to be accepted in hindsight, to be loved by a community, and he could understand more or less, what was so appealing about it.

After all, if standing next to her felt like standing next to a human lighthouse in the middle of fishing season, he couldn't imagine what it must feel like to live a life like that every single day. Around her, people smiled, where friendly and where genuinely caring, it was incredible, unlike anything he had felt before, because Aurora's world wasn't dark, her world was... sunny, and basking in that ever present sunlight made him want to stay a while longer, because in his world, where greed, deceit, thievery and lies, dictated both life and death, he had never been anywhere close to this, to what Aurora had given him to taste.

She had been right, there was freedom in staying, but only if you lived in her world of sunlight.

By the time it was evening, he knew that Tiana's restaurant was everything for her and her husband, that Hazel's mother wanted to send her to a boarding school in Paris to get her away from Ryder and that Moe French was suffering from a heart disease because of his high cholesterol.

"I know it must sound boring for you" Aurora said noticing his lost in the distance expression "But it's not" she sighed realizing he wasn't any closer to seeing things trough her eyes, "Storybrooke is my home, it's the home of so many good people, I don't expect you to see why I love it here, but at least tell me you have learned something"

"Today I learned that you know entirely too much gossip, entirely too much maps, and entirely too much people" he didn't want to tell her he did see it, he did see what she was talking about, it would be too dangerous.

looking up to the sky Aurora sighed, squeezing his hand "come before sunset I want to to show you something"

Curious, Killian followed her, ignoring the waves and strange looks they got as Aurora made her way to the back of Storybrooke's iconic library "Princess, not that I'm opposing to a back ally tryst but where are you taking me exactly love?"

"do you ever think of something that isn't sex? You womanizing cad" Aurora hissed rolling her eyes.

Killian chuckled "Do I ever?"

"Hush now, come on, this is going to be great" she whispered opening a hidden back door that led to the firescape exit of the clock tower, still holding his hand she kept going forward.

"the clock tower stairs?, I don't know if you have heard darling but I don't exactly have good memories of this place, why revisit old memories?" Hook said nervous remembering when Greg and Tamara had held him hostage as he followed the ex-sleeping beauty into the inner workings of the town's clock. "Some old bitties held me hostage someplace near"

"why am I not surprised?" Aurora laughed climbing up the harder part of the stairs "but don't worry according to Belle, they scrubbed the bloodstains off the railing sometime after the war with shadow"

"ahh yes, messy business I heard, poor lady, having to suffer all that havoc just above her precious library" he followed her climbing one step at a time, cursing his lack of hand that made him unable to react if she slipped "does the croc's missus by chance know you are sneaking me in to the clock tower this eve?"

Aurora gave him a look that said "what do you think?" when they reached the front of the railing that was just in-front of the clock's glass, she continued on rolling her eyes at a very puzzled pirate.

"I thought this was where you wanted to take me, you know, the front of the clock" Hook said matter of factly "now you got me in a pickle, should I be wary of your murder tendencies today of all days?" he joked to lighten the mood, really not knowing what the heck the princess wanted to show him.

"come on it's only a little bit higher" She motioned to a set of stairs that was set aside behind some clockwork "there, see that window up in the ceiling?" standing at the base of the small set of stairs, he could see that there was indeed a window in the top of the dome-like ceiling of the clock tower, and since there was space for two in the stairs, she smiled in excitement "this is what I wanted to show you" the two climbed up the last set of stairs and Aurora opened the dust clogged window, for him to see.

"it's a nice view, I can see my boat from here" Hook said nodding, reaching out and opening the glass panes wider, watching the whole town from the vantage point they had at the top of Storybrooke's clock tower "you know what would make it even better?" he asked peeking down the window to observe a support banister made of wood in the border of the dome "if there wasn't any window at all"

"Hook,..Pirate...Captain" Aurora stuttered when she watched him reach up and as deftly as he had on his ship climb up on the window to let himself out "Killian!" she hissed at last "what the magic you think you are doing?"

"getting a better view, now come on princess, don't be a spoil sport" He chuckled and almost like an acrobat he balanced his legs and body out of the window in the ceiling leaving a shocked Aurora frozen in the stairs...

ten minutes later he poked his head back into the clock tower to find her glaring at him "aren't you coming up?, the view is really nice up here"

"and fall to my death? No thank you I'd rather stay put"

"there's a banister in here, it's not like it is possible to fall, not without a conscious effort at least love" he winked and extended his good hand trough the window "come on, I'll give you a hand up" the princess looked at his hand warily, her heart saying one thing and her head another, but then he had to go and smile, that heart-melting-soul-damning smile of his "Aurora, I promise, you'll be okay"

And lord she was a goner, because, even when she should be keeping her heart away from him, she couldn't help but feel he was sincere, and that he really would protect her, like he had done the night on his boat, so against her better judgment, once again she took his hand. "thank you" she said when her dainty hand enclosed his.

And for a moment that was it, the moment her eyes met his, as he helped her out of the window and into the rooftop, that was when she knew she somehow had fallen for him, for his smile, and the tenderness he seemed to only show her lately, her heart stuttered a bit, and in that split second, her legs faltered "careful love" Hook whispered pulling her up to his chest seeing her feet had almost slipped down the dome "we don't want you to hurt yourself", Hook felt Aurora's heartbeat accelerate, this time tough the organ wasn't actively beating in his hand like it had been last time, but he felt it in his chest, because he had Aurora held tightly to him, her response made him smile.

"do you like the view?" was the first thing Aurora could whisper once she looked away from his eyes, carefully untangling herself from him, she tried to settle in the white banister on the dome.

Hook smiled, but went along "aye lass, it's a view like no other" the evening was getting colder and Hook knew it meant the sun was setting, "this place is the highest vantage point in Storybrooke isn't it?" he could see every building from where they sat, it the top of the dome, from the docs to town's hall, everything was in plain sight.

Aurora nodded, "this town doesn't have many tall buildings, I like to watch Storybrooke, whenever I feel discouraged, I come here" she confided closing her eyes "I like to feel, that I can watch over the people I care about, seeing everything from here...makes me feel batter about everything else"

"I can see the appeal" Hook muttered under his breath, watching the people below on the streets, all minding their own business, but knowing each other's at the same time "I can understand why you like it here in dry land you know"

"you can?" Aurora hadn't expected this, but the pirate nodded

"I'd forgotten how it feels, when one has a place to belong" he spoke with remorse, and even a little sadness "people here, they treat you with care, and you return the feeling...you know that if you ever need anything, you will never be alone, because you trust them" then he looked at her, that rare honesty in his eyes that made Aurora inch closer to him so that their arms touched "that's your brand of freedom isn't it?, the joy of knowing you can trust others" and in an uncharacteristically intimate move Killian put his arm around Aurora and brought her closer to his chest.

"it isn't easy, but at least...it's better than living in the darkness of my own regrets" She whispered burying herself deeper into his chest instead of away, and he caressed her hair calmly because it wasn't just her who had felt happy to walk around town with him, he had felt it too, she made him feel accepted, and even a little respected by the usual townsfolk that wouldn't ever give him the time of the day had she not been present, with her, he had felt what it would be to be just Killian.

And he understood.

He understood now why she had left her kingdom in the enchanted forest in favor of starting over in Storybrooke, had he not wanted the same thing after just a day of living without the shadow of his dark reputation?, she had wanted to start over somewhere people saw her for herself, she had wanted people to see her with clean eyes, with the pair of eyes she saw HIM with each night, eyes that didn't care for his sins or good deeds, eyes that tried to ignore who he was (most of the time), and focused on who he IS...

Yes Killian Jones could say he understood freedom trough the princess's eyes, she had shown him a piece of her that was as personal as showing her the sea had been for him, he who had shown her the salty air and endless glitter of dawn on deck, was coming to see eye to eye with her also. She understood that part of him he never shared.

maybe this was why he kissed her.

It started slow, like most kisses, Killian's arm had been holding her so protectively against his chest, that all he needed to do to reach her light porcelain lips was just to bend his head a little and tilt Aurora's head up.

It was by no means a furious fiery kiss, well not at first at least, at first it was just a taste, two people tasting each other's strengths and inhibitions, just tasting, for flavor, for scent, taking in what the other had with a slow savoring breath, then of course, Aurora's tongue peeked out timidly, grazing his lips, with inexperience causing him to come undone.

because after tasting her lips Killian had to stop himself and let her breathe "I'm not going to say I'm sorry" he whispered out of breath, looking at her face, beautifully pink from their kiss**, **

What he hadn't expected was for her to nod "Good, don't you ever" and tangle her hands in his hair to pull him back to her.

The second kiss, well that one, was the one that was fiery, it was everything a princess's kiss ought to be not, it was hungry, greedy and rest assured very lustful, _no wonder he has so many women in his list,_ thought Aurora feeling his tongue invade her mouth, _oh my, wow, if he kisses like that, what else can the pirate do well?.._

Killian's thoughts where not far from Aurora's in that train, since after one taste of his mouth he was left wondering how in the world he was going to keep behaving during their nightly meetings, hell, he had a dirtier mind than her, there was no way he would ever be able to associate the words "innocent" and "Aurora" ever again, not when she kissed like a bloody siren, did she even know her lips tasted like heaven?.

"We need to stop" Aurora said breathless at last after..well... a little too many kisses "we need to stop" she said again calming down her rapidly beating heart, she separated her face from him and buried it into his chest saying it once again "we need to stop"

"Who are you trying to convince love?, me or you?" Killian chuckled bringing his arms around her and whispering into her ear, not really upset she had stopped, in truth, he was pretty sure that if it weren't for HER self-control, he would have pretty much persuaded her to be a little less..innocent, in the open clock tower ceiling.

"Me, me, mostly me...and then you.." Aurora admitted, not ready to look at him in the eye, gosh, she behaved like a common maid, "I'm beyond redemption now" she cried in guilt but didn't lift her head from his chest or separate herself from him.

"if you ask me, the you that's beyond redemption is very, very" he lowered his tone to a hungry growl "tempting" he felt her head sink a little more into his chest almost as if she where berating herself "do you regret the kiss?" he challenged in good humor

Why was he so happy about it? Aurora thought "of course not, I liked it so much it's sacrilegious" she said muffling a snort

"scared the senses out of you too huh?"

"Do we need to talk about it Killian?" the princess begged finally lifting her head from his chest, looking at him with confused grey eyes because this was the first time she had done something like this.. kissed someone...like this..behaved so.. insane

"Do we have to talk about what?, that thing where we are miles above the ground on a secluded spot nobody will be able to find us?, or that we have lives down there that are waiting for us as soon we manage to climb back down...or are you referring to the fact we just kissed?...a lot" he listed smirking at her discomfort "going to have to be more specific Aurora love"

"all of it, mostly the third one" she whispered trying to settle her head on his shoulder.

Killian just kissed the top of her head tenderly, understanding more or less her inner turmoil and feeling bad for having made fun of it "no, we don't have to talk about it if you don't want to"

"it's just that.. I like it here and we where talking, but you are a pirate and I'm a princess and..." she tried to explain

"shh shh, it's okay, it's okay" he cut her off tenderly taking her hand into his, "I understand, when we return to our lives, we'll figure it out, right now...you can just be Aurora and I can just be Killian, no taglines attached" Killian offered kissing their intertwined hands "would you like that lass?"

Aurora nodded "just for now, I think being Killian and Aurora...is enough" and turning tilting her head back up she met him halfway for another kiss.

**funny note about elemental symbolism: Killian's version of freedom is in the sea (aka water/ oceans) and Aurora's version of freedom is in dry land (aka earth/sand dunes) ...so for their first kiss I chose somewhere high up, (the clock tower dome) to represent the sky, in their case, the element air, it felt fitting that for the kiss, they met halfway, neither in his territory, nor in hers...because the sky is everywhere, both in sea and land.  
**

******anyway who else likes tender hearted Killian?, now please review because so far I worked my ass off for that first kiss... seriously I didn't know if it would fit in well with this scene but it does...yay for me **


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